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Hershey Litigation Update

| Nov 13, 2012 | Hershey Overtime Lawsuit

The Brandi Law Firm has been involved in three cases on behalf of workers at Hershey seeking payments wrongfully denied them.  In Campanelli Vs Hershey, over 120 retail sales representatives (RSRs) brought suit for unpaid overtime.  This case settled shortly after a Court finding in favor of Plaintiffs that they were entitled to overtime, which had been wrongly denied them.

When Hershey did not change its policies, shortly thereafter a second suit was brought by RSRs seeking unpaid overtime.  Over 150 Hershey present and former RSRs have joined the suit which is pending in federal court in San Francisco.

In the third case, a group of high-level Hershey employees who were all over forty years of age and were dismissed and replaced with younger workers have brought suit for age discrimination and other claims.  On November 6, 2012, Judge Charles R. Breyer, of the Northern District of California, denied summary judgment to The Hershey Company, ruling that Hershey had not met its burden of showing that legal releases signed by the plaintiffs in this age discrimination group case were valid under federal law.  In coming to this decision, Judge Breyer correctly gave a broad reading to the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA).

The case, Barnes v. The Hershey Company is next up for a decision on whether Judge Breyer will grant approval for notice to go out to similarly situated older Customer Sales Executives and Category Development Managers, advising them of their right to join the case.  We believe that our clients were the victims of a longstanding Hershey pattern or practice of using a “slot blocker” policy, where Hershey targets older workers who are perceived to be blocking paths for advancement of younger workers.”

If you would like more information on any of the Hershey litigation, please contact our office at 800-481-1615 or [email protected]

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