Sharma v. Burberry Ltd.
Poonam SHARMA, Brian Roach, Ronnel Jarin, and Nikita Simon, on behalf of themselves and all others similarly situated v. BURBERRY LIMITED a/k/a Burberrys Limited
Attorneys
Daniel MaimĂłn Kirschenbaum, Douglas Weiner, Joseph & Kirschenbaum LLP, New York, NY, David Harrison, Harrison, Harrison & Associates, Ltd., Red Bank, NJ, for Plaintiffs., Amy L. Bess, Vedder Price P.C., Washington, DC, Joseph K. Mulherin, Vedder Price PC, Chicago, IL, Lyle S. Zuckerman, Vedder Price P.C., New York, NY, for Defendant.
Full Opinion (html_with_citations)
DECISION AND ORDER
Plaintiffs Poonam Sharma (âSharmaâ), Brian Roach (âRoachâ), Ronnel Jarin (âJarinâ), and Nikita Simon (âSimonâ) (collectively, âPlaintiffsâ) bring this action on behalf of themselves and all similarly situated persons seeking unpaid overtime compensation from Defendant Burberry Limited a/k/a Burberrys Limited (âDefendantâ or âBurberryâ), pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (âFLSAâ), as amended, 29 U.S.C. §§ 201 et seq. and the New York Labor Law.
Plaintiffs have moved for conditional certification as a collective action and for notice of pendency to potential collective action members, pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 216(b) (âPlaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certificationâ). DE 46. Plaintiffs have also filed two motions to compel documents, including a representative sample of nationwide employee data. DE 43, 64. Defendant has moved to strike portions of Plaintiffsâ evidence submitted in support of Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification (âDefendantâs Motion to Strikeâ) [DE 51] and has filed two motions to supplement the record [DE 62, 66]. Plaintiffs have also moved to supplement the record. DE 75. Based on the Courtâs review of the partiesâ submissions as well as the applicable case law: (1) Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification is hereby GRANTED in part and DENIED in part; (2) Defendantâs Motion to Strike is DENIED; (3) Plaintiffsâ and Defendantâs motions to supplement the record are GRANTED; and (4) Plaintiffsâ motions to compel are GRANTED in part and DENIED in part to the extent set forth below.
I. Background
A. Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification
The following alleged facts are taken from the Amended Complaint filed in this case on April 15, 2013 [DE 16] and the declarations submitted by the four named Plaintiffs and two opt-in Plaintiffsâincluding the declaration of Danny Kozak (âKo-zakâ), a former manager at Burberryâin support of Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification [DE 46] and in support of Plaintiffsâ letter motion to supplement the record [DE 75]. See âKozak Deckâ; âSharma Deckâ; âRoach Deckâ; âJarin Deckâ; âSimon Deckâ; âSioson Deckâ; and âSimms Deck,â attached as Exs. 1-6 to Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification [DE 46] and Ex. 1 to Plaintiffsâ letter motion to supplement the record [DE 75].
Burberry is an international high-end retail fashion enterprise, operating approximately 65 retail store establishments in the United States. Kozak Deck ¶ 1. Burberry employs Sales Associates (âSAsâ) in each store to attend to retail customers and make sales of merchandise. Id. ¶ 3.
1. Plaintiffsâ Declarations
Plaintiffs allege that they regularly worked more than 40 hours per week without being paid for overtime. Am. Compl. ¶¶ 36-37. Specifically, Plaintiffs allege that they were scheduled to work and were paid for 39 or 40 hours per week, but that they actually worked many more hours for which they were not compensated.
According to Plaintiffs, Burberryâs managers, including Kozak, a General Manager (âGMâ), and âChristineâ and âRaphael,â managers at the Manhasset store, told the SAs that it was Burberryâs policy not to pay overtime to its SAs. Sharma Deck ¶ 10; Jarin Deck ¶ 23; Simon Deck ¶ 10; Sioson Deck ¶ 26; Simms Dec. ¶ 4. In addition, according to opt-in Plaintiff Simms, who worked at the Manhasset and Roosevelt Field Mall locations, GMs Danny Kozak, Jamie Hollis and Eric Ali often
Plaintiffs all claim that Burberryâs pay practices were âwidespreadâ and were the same at other Burberry stores as well. Plaintiffs Sharma, Jarin, Simon and Sioson claim they know the practice to be widespread âfrom what [they] w[ere] told by other Sales Associates.â Sharma Decl. ¶ 27; Jarin Decl. ¶ 27; Simon Decl. ¶ 26; Sioson Decl. ¶ 26. Plaintiff Roach states that the practices were widespread but proffers no explanation as to how he knows this. Roach Decl. ¶22. Plaintiffs Jarin and Simon, who worked at the Man-hasset store, state that they spoke to SAs at the Roosevelt Field Mall store who told them that the SAs there routinely worked extra hours for which they were not paid. Jarin Decl. ¶ 25; Simon Decl. ¶ 27. These Roosevelt Field Mall SAs are identified by either first name only or both first and last name. Jarin Decl. ¶ 25; Simon Decl. ¶ 27.
2. Kozakâs Declaration
In support of Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification, Plaintiffs submit the declaration of Danny Kozak, former GM of Burberry. Kozak explains that at each store, Burberry employs a GM to manage the business operation of the store. Kozak Decl. ¶ 1. GMs report to one of four Regional Managers, who in turn report to Burberryâs President of Stores. Id. Kozak worked for Burberry for over ten years earning promotions from SA to Menâs Selling Manager, to Assistant General Manager (AGM) and, lastly, to GM, a position he held until Burberry terminated him in January 2012. Id. He is not asserting an overtime claim because he was promoted to a salaried position in Burberryâs management prior to the period covered in this lawsuit. Id.
Kozak was hired as an SA in November 2001 and worked as an SA in the Manhas-set store through 2007. Id. ¶ 4. During those years, he was only paid for his scheduled 40 hours weekly, notwithstanding the fact that he routinely worked 50 hours per week and even more during holidays. Id. According to Kozak, Regional Manager Barbara Hill told him that it was âstandard in the retail industry for employees to work off the clock, and that, customer service was Burberryâs top priority and overtime pay was not authorized.â Id.
In 2006, Kozak was promoted to the position ' of Menâs Selling Manager (âMSMâ). âIn each store [he] worked,â Kozak saw the same practice of Burberry requiring Sales Associates to work off the clock. Id. ¶ 5.
In 2009, Kozak was promoted to AGM. As an AGM, he worked at all six stores in New York, Boston, Baltimore, and New Jersey. Id. ¶ 6. His duties included scheduling SAs in Burberryâs stores and âfollowing the same time keeping and weekly payroll procedures [he] had been taught by Burberry management.â Id. âUnder the training, supervision and direction of Burberryâs Regional Manager Barbara Hill, [he] reported [SAsâ] scheduled hours for, time keeping and payroll purposes rather than the actual hours they worked.â Id. In fact, according to Kozak, it was routine for SAs to work off-the-clock before and after their scheduled shifts and through lunch without- pay at âevery store.â Id. ¶ 6.
Kozakâs primary duty was to the Burberry store in Manhasset, New York. Id. ¶ 14. However, Regional Manager Hill often asked Kozak to work in other stores, to open new stores or train new GMs in Burberryâs protocols, or to temporarily replace an absent GM or to assist an incumbent GM. Id. The only store identified by Kozak in this regard is the Roosevelt Field Mall, New York store, where Kozak trained GMs. Id. According to Kozak, âBurberryâs wide[]spread practice of requiring off[-]the[-]clock uncompensated work was a uniform policy in each store.â Id.
Kozak explains that at the Manhasset store, SAs were frequently required to work more than their scheduled hours. Id. ¶¶ 21-23. All of this off-the-clock time was required because Burberry maintains a luxury environment for its customers which requires its stores to be in excellent shape at all times. Id. ¶ 24.
According to Kozak, although different employees held the position of Regional Manager, Burberryâs time-keeping policies of reporting only scheduled hours and requiring SAs to work off the clock remained the same. Id. In fact, Kozak attended national and regional conferences in New Orleans, Las Vegas, and Baltimore where GMs âcandidly discussed Burberryâs scheduling and payroll policies,â id. ¶ 13, and âdiscussed how each store was subject to the same off[-]the[-]clock polices,â id. ¶ 34. The GMs confirmed that they all faced the same problem of staffing the stores adequately to achieve required sales goals while maintaining Burberryâs high level of service without using unauthorized overtime hours. Id. ¶ 13. Regional Manager Hill and other senior management âfrequentlyâ told Kozak and other unidentified GMs that they had to âkeep Burberryâs overtime pay expenses down,â id., and that they should ânot authorize unscheduled overtime hours,â id. ¶ 28. GMs who did report unscheduled overtime hours were downgraded in their evaluations by Burberryâs management. Id. For example, Kozak was âtold by a[n unidentified] GM that he did not receive a bonus in 2011 because he reported the number of overtime hours employees actually worked.â Id. Regional Managers frequently admonished GMs to âstrictly abide by the authorized payroll budget, which did not allow for adequate overtime pay.â Id. In that regard, Regional Managers allotted GMs an authorized number of hours to spend on payroll and GMs were evaluated on whether the store met or exceeded target payrolls. Id. ¶ 29. Kozak continues:
Because GMs were evaluated in part based on how much overtime was paid to Sales Associates, there existed in every Burberry store major incentives to overlook recording unscheduled overtime work, which resulted in a widespread practice of permitting off[-]the[-]elock work. Burberryâs payroll targets could only be achieved when overtime was not properly compensated. Overtime pay was routinely avoided by simply not recording all of the time Sales Associates actually worked. Unrecorded overtime*449 was not paid. Regional Manager Hill justified Burberryâs illegal policies by telling me that Sales Associates did not usually complain about off[-]the-cloek work because they earned commissions from sales.
I witnessed on a daily basisâat numerous Burberry storesâBurberryâs policy of paying scheduled hours instead of the longer hours Sales Associated actually worked. For example, when a Sales Associate actually worked ten hours a day, his/her time was routinely only recorded for payroll purposes on Burberryâs time sheets as having worked 8 hours that day.
Even though most Sales Associates worked an average of ten weekly overtime hours (fifteen weekly overtime hours in Holiday season), it was Burberryâs policy to only pay them for their scheduled 40 weekly hours.
Throughout my ten plus years as a Sales Associate, MSM, AGM, and GM working at more than six different stores, Burberryâs uniform payroll policy never varied.
Id. ¶¶ 30-33.
3. The Relief Sought by Plaintiffs in their Motion for Conditional Certification
Plaintiffs seek conditional certification of âall SAs employed by Burberry at any time from December 26, 2009 to the present, and in New York from December 26, 2006 to the present.â
B. Defendantâs Opposition to Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification
In opposition to Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification, Defendant submits the declarations of twenty-two current and former SAs, twenty-two GMs, and five Market Directors (âMDsâ) from Burberry stores nationwide which Defendant contends unequivocally refute Plaintiffsâ claims of nationwide improper pay practices. DE 50. Contrary to Plaintiffsâ allegations, Defendant claims that Burberryâs policy required overtime to be paid, whether pre-authorized or not.
C. Defendantâs Motion to Strike
On the same day that Defendant served its opposition papers to Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification, Defendant served its Motion to Strike. DE 51. In its Motion, Defendant argues that large portions of Plaintiffsâ and Kozakâs declarations should be stricken because they are not based on personal knowledge and contain broad conclusory speculation, hearsay, and impermissible opinion. DE 52. Plaintiffs did not serve an opposition to Defendantâs Motion to Strike. Instead, Plaintiffs opposed Defendantâs Motion to Strike in their Reply Memorandum in Further Support of their Motion for Conditional Certification. DE 49.
D. Defendantâs Motions to Correct and/or Supplement the Record
On March 12, 2014, Defendant filed a letter motion to âcorrectâ the record by adding the recent deposition testimony of
On June 6, 2014, Defendant filed a letter motion to supplement the record with Ko-zakâs recent deposition testimony in connection with both Defendantâs Motion to Strike and Defendantâs opposition to Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification. DE 66. In its motion, Defendant claims that Kozakâs recent deposition testimony contradicts his sworn declaration and further demonstrates that Kozak has no personal knowledge about the allegations made in his declaration that Burberry has a nationwide practice of denying SAs overtime pay. Id. In response, Plaintiffs maintain that Kozakâs deposition testimony corroborates rather than refutes his earlier sworn declaration. DE 67.
E. Plaintiffsâ Motion to Supplement the Record
On August 11, 2014, Plaintiffs filed a motion to supplement the record on their Motion for Conditional Certification by adding the declaration of recent opt-in Plaintiff Simms, who worked for Burberry at its Manhasset store for two years and at its Roosevelt Field Mall store for two years. DE 75; see also Simms Deel. ¶ 3. Defendant opposed the motion on August 14, 2014, arguing that Simmsâs declaration âdoes nothing to cure Plaintiffsâ woefully deficient showing in support of their motion for nationwide certification.â DE 76.
F. Plaintiffsâ Motions to Compel
1. Plaintiffsâ First Motion to Compel
Five weeks prior to filing their Motion for Conditional Certification, Plaintiffs filed a motion to compel Defendant to produce documents and information which Plaintiffs requested in their Interrogatories and Document Requests. Specifically, Plaintiffs seek:
(i) The names and contact information of a 25% sample of the putative FLSA collective members (âFLSA Collectiveâ);
(ii) Complete time records (including EZ Labor records and the handwritten (or electronic) sign in/out sheets) for a 10% sample group of the FLSA Collective;
(iii) Complete payroll records (including ADP records) for a 10% sample group of the FLSA Collective; and
(iv) Complete time and payroll records for all former and current Sales Associates employed since 2006 at the Manhas-set store and since 2009 at the Short Hills store.
DE 43 at 1-2. With regard to this latter request, Plaintiffs concede that they did not specifically ask for. these timesheets and pay records. Id. at 2 n. 4 Notwithstanding that fact, Plaintiffs maintain that in the event that the Court denies Plaintiffsâ request for the 10% sample group of the FLSA Collective, Defendant should be required to produce these records. Id. Plaintiffs also request that Defendant produce each employee handbook distributed by Defendant to its SAs. DE 43 at 3.
Defendant opposes Plaintiffsâ motion on the grounds that: (1) the prevailing view in the Eastern District is that discovery of a class memberâs identity is improper and premature prior to FLSA certification; and (2) the proper course is for Plaintiffs to first engage in initial discovery, followed by a motion for conditional certification, and then obtain relevant records for individuals who opt-in to the case following
2. Plaintiffsâ Second Motion to Compel
On April 23, 2014, Plaintiffs filed a second motion to compel seeking an Order directing Burberry to produce performance evaluations, weekly schedules and handwritten sign in/out time sheets for all SAs assigned to Defendantâs Manhasset, New York and Short Hills, New Jersey locations. DE 64. Defendant opposes the motion, inter alia, as duplicative of Plaintiffsâ first motion to compel. Notwithstanding its opposition, Defendant agrees to provide the requested documents for the Manhasset SAs for the relevant statutory liability period only. DE 65 at 1-2.
II. Discussion
A. Legal Standard on a Motion for Conditional Certification
The FLSA provides, in pertinent part, as follows:
Any employer who violates the provisions of section 206 or section 207 of this title shall be liable to the employee of employees affected in the amount of their unpaid minimum wages, or their unpaid overtime compensation, as the case may be, and in an additional equal amount as liquidated damages.... An action to recover ... may be maintained against any employer (including a public agency) in any Federal or State court of competent jurisdiction by any one or more employees for and in behalf of himself or themselves and other employees similarly situated. No employee shall be a party plaintiff to any such action unless he gives his consent in writing to become such a party and such consent is filed in the court in which such action is brought.
29 U.S.C. § 216(b). Section 216(b) provides an employee with a private right of action- to recover overtime compensation and/or minimum wages. Id.; Bifulco v. Mort. Zone, Inc., 262 F.R.D. 209, 212 (E.D.N.Y.2009); Gjurovich v. Emmanuelâs Marketplace, Inc., 282 F.Supp.2d 101, 103 (S.D.N.Y.2003). âAlthough the FLSA does not contain a class certification requirement, such orders are often referred to in terms of âcertifying a class.â â Bifulco, 262 F.R.D. at 212 (citations omitted).
Courts within the Second Circuit apply ĂĄ two-step analysis to determine whether an action should be certified as an FLSA collective action. First, the court determines whether the proposed class members are âsimilarly situated.â McGlone v. Contract Callers, Inc., 867 F.Supp.2d 438, 442 (S.D.N.Y.2012); Rubery v. Buth-Na-Bodhaige, Inc., 569 F.Supp.2d 334, 336 (W.D.N.Y.2008). If the court decides in the affirmative, then the proposed class members must consent in writing to be bound by the result of the suit, or âopt-in.â Id.; see 29 U.S.C. § 216(b). The second step, which typically occurs after the completion of discovery, requires the court to make factual findings whether the class members are actually similarly situated. Rosario v. Valentine Ave. Discount Store, Co., 828 F.Supp.2d 508, 514 (E.D.N.Y.2011); Bifulco, 262 F.R.D. at 212. âAt that juncture, the court examines the evidentiary record to determine whether the âopt-inâ plaintiffs are, in fact, similarly situated to the named
The instant motion concerns only the first stepâwhether the proposed opt-in members are âsimilarly situatedâ such that conditional certification should be granted. At this stage, âthe evidentiary standard is lenient,â Rubery, 569 F.Supp.2d at 336, and âplaintiffs need only make âa modest factual showing sufficient to demonstrate that they and potential plaintiffs together were victims of a common policy or plan that violated the law.â â Doucoure v. Matlyn Food, Inc., 554 F.Supp.2d 369, 372 (E.D.N.Y.2008) (quoting Hoffmann v. Sbarro, 982 F.Supp. 249, 261 (S.D.N.Y.1997)); Trinidad v. Pret A Manger (USA) Ltd., 962 F.Supp.2d 545, 552 (S.D.N.Y.2013); Iglesias-Mendoza v. La Belle Farm, Inc., 239 F.R.D. 363, 367 (S.D.N.Y.2007). Courts have repeatedly stated that Section 216(b)âs âsimilarly situatedâ requirement is âconsiderably less stringentâ than the requirements for class certification under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23. See, e.g., Rodolico v. Unisys Corp., 199 F.R.D. 468, 481 (E.D.N.Y.2001) (collecting cases). âIn making this showing, ânothing more than substantial allegations that the putative class members were together the victims of a single decision, policy or planâ is required.â Sexton v. Franklin First Fin., Ltd., No. 08-CV- 4950, 2009 WL 1706535, at *3 (E.D.N.Y. Jun. 16, 2009) (quoting Scholtisek v. Eldre Corp., 229 F.R.D. 381, 387 (W.D.N.Y.2005)); Jin Yun Zheng v. Good Fortune Supermarket Grp. (USA), Inc., No. 13-cv-60, 2013 WL 5132023, at *4 (E.D.N.Y. Sept. 12, 2013). The standard of proof remains low because the purpose of this first stage is merely to determine whether âsimilarly situatedâ plaintiffs do in fact exist. Trinidad, 962 F.Supp.2d at 553 (citing Dybach v. State of Fla. Depât of Corr., 942 F.2d 1562, 1567 (11th Cir.1991)).
Courts do not require proof of an actual FLSA violation, âbut rather that a âfactual nexusâ exists between the plaintiffs situation and the situation of other potential plaintiffs.â Sobczak v. AWL Indus., Inc., 540 F.Supp.2d 354, 362 (E.D.N.Y.2007) (quoting Wraga v. Marble Lite, Inc., No. 05-CV-5038, 2006 WL 2448554, at *1 (E.D.N.Y. Aug. 22, 2006)). This determination is typically âbased on the pleadings, affidavits and declarationsâ submitted by the plaintiff or plaintiffs. See Sexton, 2009 WL 1706535, at *3 (citing Hens, 2006 WL 2795620, at *3); see also Hallissey v. Am. Online, Inc., No. 99-CV-3785, 2008 WL 465112, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 19, 2008) (âPlaintiffs may satisfy this requirement by relying on their own pleadings, affidavits, declarations, or the affidavits and declarations of other potential class members.â).
Indeed, courts in the Second Circuit routinely grant conditional certification for overtime claims based on the statements of the named plaintiff(s) and other supporting affidavits. See Kemper v. Westbury Operating Corp., No. 12-CV-0895, 2012 WL 4976122, at *2 (E.D.N.Y. Oct. 17, 2012) (granting conditional certification for overtime claims based on affidavit of the named plaintiff); Klimchak v. Cardrona, Inc., No. CV-09-4311, 2011 WL 1120463, at *4-6 (E.D.N.Y. Mar. 24, 2011) (granting conditional certification at the initial stage of discovery where the two named plaintiffs and two opt-in plaintiffs submitted affidavits); Schwerdtfeger v. Demarchelier Mgmt., Inc., No. 10-CV-7557, 2011 WL 2207517, at *3 (S.D.N.Y. June 6, 2011) (granting conditional certification for overtime, minimum wage and tip violations at defendantsâ restaurants based on declarations from named plaintiffs and opt-ins); Lujan v. Cabana Mgmt., Inc., No. 10-CV-755, 2011 WL 317984, at *4 (E.D.N.Y. Feb.
B. Form of Notice
âNeither the [FLSA], nor other courts, have specifically outlined what form court-authorized notice should take nor what provisions the notice should contain.â Moore v. Eagle Sanitation, Inc., 276 F.R.D. 54, 59 (E.D.N.Y.2011) (citing Fasa-nelli v. Heartland Brewery, Inc., 516 F.Supp.2d 317, 323 (S.D.N.Y.2007)). The Supreme Court has abstained from reviewing the contents of a proposed notice under § 216(b) noting âwe decline to examine the terms of the notice ... We confirm the existence of the trial courtâs discretion, not the details of its exercise.â Hoffmann-La Roche, Inc. v. Sperling, 493 U.S. 165, 170, 110 S.Ct. 482, 486, 107 L.Ed.2d 480 (1989). âWhen exercising its broad discretion to craft appropriate notices in individual cases, District Courts consider the overarching policies of the collective suit provisionsâ and whether the notice provides âaccurate and timely notice concerning the pendency of the collective action, so that [an individual receiving the notice] can make an informed decision about whether to participate.â Fasanelli, 516 F.Supp.2d at 323; Delaney v. Geisha NYC, LLC, 261 F.R.D. 55, 59 (S.D.N.Y.2009).
C. Analysis of Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification
Plaintiffs seek conditional certification as to the following group:
all SAs employed by Burberry at any time from December 26, 2009 to the present, and in New York from December 26, 2006 to the present.
DE 47 at 2. In an attempt to refute Plaintiffsâ allegation that the putative class of SAs is âsimilarly situated,â Defendant has filed three separate motions attacking the sufficiency of the declarations submitted by Plaintiffs in support of their Motion for Conditional Certification, namely, a Motion to Strike and two letter motions to correct and/or supplement the record. In addition, Plaintiffs have filed a letter motion to supplement the record. Before the Court can decide whether Plaintiffs have met their âmodestâ burden of showing that they and potential opt-in plaintiffs were victims of a common policy or plan that violates the law, the Court must first determine what the relevant record is. The Court addresses each motion in turn below.
1. Defendantâs Motion to Strike
Defendant moves to strike large portions of Plaintiffsâ and Kozakâs declarations on the grounds that they are not based on personal knowledge and contain broad con-clusory speculation, hearsay, and impermissible opinion. DE 52. Defendant served its Motion to Strike the same day Defendant served opposition papers to Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification. In fact, Defendant references the Motion to Strike in one paragraph of its opposition papers and requests that Plaintiffsâ declarations be disregarded and given no weight for the reasons described in the Motion to Strike. DE 50 at 10. Given these circumstances, the Court is left to speculate whether the Motion to Strike
2. The Partiesâ Motions to Supplement the Record
a. Defendantâs Motions to Correct and/or Supplement the Record
In support of their Motion for Conditional Certification, Plaintiffs submit the declarations of the four named Plaintiffs (Sharma, Roach, Jarin and Simon) and two opt-in Plaintiffs (Sioson and Simms). After the motion was filed, Defendant moved to âcorrectâ the record with the recent deposition testimony of three of the named PlaintiffsâJarin, Roach and Simon. As noted above, the declarations submitted by all of the Plaintiffs were identical in many respects, including that each Plaintiff swore it was Burberryâs policy that SAs were only to record scheduled hours on the storeâs weekly time sheets even though they worked more time than is reflected in these sheets. The Plaintiffs further averred that this was done to avoid showing any overtime pursuant to a Burberry policy not to pay overtime to its SAs. Defendant now claims that the recent deposition testimony of three of the named Plaintiffs substantially contradicts these statements. More specifically, Defendant claims that âthe Named Plaintiffs each testified that following Danny Kozakâs discharge (in January 2012), they were instructed by Burberry management to record their actual hours worked, rather than their scheduled hours.â DE 62 at 2. In response, Plaintiffs contend that this deposition testimony supplements their declarations and does not contradict them in any meaningful way. DE 63 at 2.
Thereafter, Defendant filed a motion to supplement the record in connection with both its Motion to Strike and its opposition to Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification. DE 66. Defendant claims that Kozakâs recent deposition testimony contradicts his sworn declaration and further demonstrates that he has no personal knowledge about the allegations made in his declaration that Burberry has a nationwide practice of denying SAs overtime pay. Id. More specifically, and as noted above, in his declaration, Kozak states that
According to Burberry, Kozakâs testimony at his deposition contradicts his sworn declaration and eviscerates the premise of Plaintiffsâ motion for condition certificationâthat Burberry maintained an unlawful nationwide policy of requiring its employees to work off the clockâbecause the testimony demonstrates Kozakâs lack of personal knowledge of Burberryâs national practices. DE 66 at 1-3. In response, Plaintiffs maintain that Kozakâs deposition testimony corroborates rather than refutes his sworn declaration. DE 67 at 1.
b. Plaintiffsâ Motion to Supplement the Record
On August 11, 2014, Plaintiffs filed a motion to supplement the record on their Motion for Conditional Certification by adding the declaration of recent opt-in Plaintiff Damien Dane Simms, who opted-in to the lawsuit in July 31, 2014. DE 75. Simms worked for Burberry at its Man-hasset store for two years and at its Roosevelt Field Mall store for two years. Simms Decl. ¶ 3. She was managed by Kozak at the Manhasset store and by GMs Jamie Hollis and Eric Ali at the Roosevelt Field Mall store. Id. ¶ 4. Both stores were supervised by Regional Manager Hill. Id. Simms averred that she and other SAs regularly worked off the clock without receiving all the overtime pay to which they were entitled. Id. ¶¶ 7-10. She further stated that she understood it was Burberryâs policy to pay SAs only for scheduled hours rather than actual hours worked. Id. ¶ 9. Lastly, Simms stated that âfrom what [she] saw and heard from other Sales Associates,â Burberryâs pay practices were not limited to the two stores where she worked. Id. ¶ 19.
Defendant opposed the motion on August 14, 2014. DE 76. Defendant argues that Simmsâs declaration does nothing to cure Plaintiffsâ deficient showing in support of their Motion for Conditional Certification because many of Simmsâs assertions are made without personal knowledge, are conclusory in nature, and lack specificity. Id. at 1. Alternatively, Defendant argues that even if the Court does consider the declaration, Plaintiffs still cannot support their theory that Burberry maintained a nationwide illegal pay policy. Id. at 1-2.
c. Decision on Motions to Supplement
The partiesâ motions to supplement the record are granted to the extent the Court will consider the supplemental filings as part of the record in determining Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification. There is no indication on either side that any of the motions were filed as a delay tactic. To the contrary, there was a good-faith basis for all of the motions in light of the changed circumstances since the filing of Plaintiffsâ original motion, namely, depositions have been conducted and the record has been more fully developed. Moreover,
The Court will not, however, engage in a person-by-person fact intensive inquiry of the declarations and deposition testimony of each plaintiff and Kozak in an attempt to iron out inconsistencies. ' Indeed, this type of individualized inquiry sought by Defendant is premature at the conditional certification stage and has been specifically rejected by courts within this Circuit. See Batres v. Valente Landscaping, Inc., No. CV14-1434, 2014 WL 2111080, at *1 (E.D.N.Y. May 21, 2014) (noting court is not to âresolve factual disputes, decide substantive issues going to the merits, or make credibility determinationsâ during the first step in the certification process) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted); Garcia v. Four Bro. Pizza, Inc., No. 13 CV 1505, 2014 WL 2211958, at *5 (S.D.N.Y. May 23, 2014) (â âAt this initial stage, the court does not resolve factual disputes, decide substantial issues going to the ultimate merits, or make credibility determinations.â â) (quoting Jackson v. Bloomberg, L.P., 298 F.R.D. 152, 158 (S.D.N.Y.2014)); Amador v. Morgan Stanley & Co., No. 11 Civ. 4326, 2013 WL 494020, at *8 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 7, 2013) (rejecting defendantsâ request to compare plaintiffsâ declarations with their deposition testimony for inconsistencies because it would ârequire the Court to resolve factual disputes or make credibility determinations ... [which] would be inappropriate on this motion at this first stage.â); Cohen v. Gerson Lehrman Grp., Inc., 686 F.Supp.2d 317, 326 (S.D.N.Y.2010) (âAt [the conditional certification] phase, the court does not resolve factual disputes, decide ultimate issues on the merits, or make credibility determinations.â).
3. Defendantâs Declarations
In opposition to Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification, Defendant asks the Court to weigh competing declarations that it submitted from forty-nine current and former Burberry employees, which Burberry claims unequivocally refute Plaintiffsâ allegations of improper pay practices. DE 50. The Court declines to consider these declarations, whose authors have not been deposed, as they do not bear on whether Plaintiffs have made the âmodest factual showingâ that they are required to make at this stage of the litigation. See Amador, 2013 WL 494020, at *3 (â[Statements gathered by an employer from its current employees are of limited evidentia-ry value in the FLSA context because of the potential for coercion. In any event,
4. Decision on Motion to Certify
Now that the Court has decided the extent of the record underlying Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification, the Court can turn to an analysis of the substance of the Motion. As noted above, Plaintiffs seek conditional certification of âall SAs employed by Burberry at any time from December 26, 2009 to the present, and all SAs employed by Burberry in New York from December 26, 2006 to the present.â DE 47 at 2. Keeping in mind the preliminary posture of this litigation, the Court first considers whether Plaintiffs have sufficiently demonstrated that they are similarly situated to SAs at the Burberry locations in New York.
a. New York Locations
Plaintiffsâ submissions satisfy their minimal burden of showing that Plaintiffs are similarly situated to employees at Burberryâs Manhasset and Roosevelt Field Mall stores in New York. The Plaintiffsâ declarations articulate that Burberry had a policy of requiring SAs to work uncompensated overtime at these two New York locations. Five of the Plaintiffs worked at the Manhasset location and one of them, i.e., Simms, also worked at the Roosevelt Field Mall location. Each Plaintiffs declaration sets forth in detail how SAs frequently worked more than their scheduled hours without receiving all of the overtime compensation due.
In addition, Plaintiffs proffer the declaration of Kozak, who has personal knowledge of Burberryâs pay practices at these two New York locations. Kozak worked as an SA in the Manhasset store from 2001 to 2007 where he routinely worked more hours than those for which he was paid. Kozak Decl. ¶ 4. In March 2010, he was promoted to GM and ran the Manhasset store until January 2012, where he was responsible for record keeping practices and pay procedures. Id. ¶ 9. He also trained GMs at the Roosevelt Field Mall store. Id. ¶ 14. According to Kozak, Burberryâs practice of requiring off-the-clock work was applied in each of these stores. Id.
Based on the above declarations, the Court finds that Plaintiffs have made the âmodest factual showingâ necessary to demonstrate that Plaintiffs and the potential plaintiffs located in these two New York storesâManhasset and Roosevelt Field Mallââwere victims of a common policy or plan that violated the law.â Doucoure, 554 F.Supp.2d 369, 372; Sbarro, 982 F.Supp. 249, 261; Trinidad, 962 F.Supp.2d at 553. Further, Plaintiffs have established a âsufficient factual nexusâ between their situation and that of the putative collective. See Sobczak, 540 F.Supp.2d at 362; Wraga, 2006 WL
Although Plaintiffs seek conditional certification of all SAs employed by Burberry in New York from December 26, 2006 to the present, there is no evidence in the record to support conditional certification of SAs at any other Burberry store in New York. As an initial matter, Plaintiffs proffer no declarations from any employees at these stores. In addition, Kozakâs general assertions that it was routine for SAs to work off-the-clock âin every storeâ are too conclusory to support certification of all New York stores absent any factual details of which stores he is referring to and the basis for his knowledge. The same is true for his assertion that as an AGM, he worked âat all six stores in New York.â He proffers no specifics as to these other stores, including when and for how long he worked at each location.
Moreover, Kozakâs deposition testimony does not cure this deficiency since it does not support a finding that SAs at other New York stores were subject to the same alleged illegal pay practices. For example, Kozak testified that the only stores for which he had payroll duties other than Manhasset and Roosevelt Field Mall were Burberryâs two stores in Westchester, New York. Kozak Dep. at 190, 240-41. However, he only worked in each of those stores for two weeks, id. at 180, he did not recall whether any employees in either store recorded overtime on their time-sheets which he did not enter into Burberryâs systems, id. at 182, 240-41, and he did not give any instructions to the Westches-ter employees with regard to filling out their timesheets, id. ¶ 241. He also testified that he âdid not do anythingâ in the Bleeker store in New York, id. at 188, and he did not do any payroll in the Soho, New York store, id. ¶ 189. Lastly, he testified that he was sent to the 57th Street, New York store to do training seminars from â9 to 11â and then he would stay for at least an hour to speak to the associates, although he does not recall how many days he did that, id. at 64-65. To the extent there are gaps in Kozakâs declaration as to the specifics of his knowledge with regard to New York stores outside of the Manhas-set and Roosevelt Field Mall locations, his deposition testimony does not fill this void. Thus, the Court finds that Kozakâs vague assertions in his declaration, coupled with his lack of knowledge of any pay violations at other New York stores, do not warrant a finding that SAs at all New York stores are similarly situated to the Plaintiffs. The Court therefore declines to conditionally certify a class of all SAs employed by Burberry in New York. See Trinidad, 962 F.Supp.2d at 557-60 (limiting notice to employees in six out of thirty-three New York locations because plaintiffs failed to allege facts supporting an inference of a common policy across all stores); McGlone v. Contract Callers, Inc., 867 F.Supp.2d 438, 444 (S.D.N.Y.2012) (conditionally certifying a modified class of employees in one of defendantâs divisions since plaintiff only established commonality with regard to this one location); Laroque v. Dominoâs Pizza, LLC, 557 F.Supp.2d 346, 355-56 (E.D.N.Y.2008) (certifying class for one of Dominoâs location but denying certification for other locations).
b. Short Hills, New Jersey Location
In support of their motion, Plaintiffs submit the declaration of opt-in Plaintiff Siosin, who worked at the Short Hills, New Jersey store from approximately January 2009 to early 2011. Sioson Decl. ¶¶ 1-2. Siosinâs declaration sets forth in detail how she and other SAs at this location were often required to work off-the-clock with no pay. Id. ¶¶ 6-24. Although
c. Nationwide Locations
Plaintiffsâ showing with respect to Burberry stores nationwide compels a different result since Plaintiffsâ submissions do not include sufficient evidence of a nationwide common policy or plan to deny SAs' pay for overtime. As the Second Circuit has made clear, the requisite modest factual showing âcannot be satisfied simply by unsupported assertions.â Myers v. Hertz Corp., 624 F.3d 537, 555 (2d Cir.2010) (internal quotation marks omitted). Plaintiffsâ motion relies precisely on such unsupported assertions to the extent Plaintiffs seek nationwide certification. Contrary to Plaintiffsâ personal knowledge as to the pay practices at the stores in which they worked, Plaintiffsâ assertions about the pay practices at other stores across the country are conclusory and unsupported. In this regard, each Plaintiff claims that Burberryâs illegal pay practices were âwidespreadâ and âtook place at other Burberry stores as well.â See., e.g., Sharma Decl. ¶ 27; Roach Decl. ¶ 22; Jarin Decl: ¶ 24; Simon Decl. ¶26; Sioson Decl. ¶ 25; Simms Decl. ¶ 19. Several Plaintiffs do not provide a source for this claim while other Plaintiffs base this assertion on âwhat [they] w[ere] told by other Sales Associates.â Sharma Decl. ¶ 27; Jarin Decl. ¶27; Simon Decl. ¶26; Sioson Decl. ¶ 26. Plaintiffs, however, fail to provide any factual detail about these âother SAs,â such as their names or where they worked. While â[cjourts in this Circuit have commonly authorized the sending of collective action notices where plaintiff includes some probative information regarding similarly situated employees such as their names, their duties and their hours worked or where plaintiff provides affidavits from such employees setting forth the pertinent facts ... where plaintiffs fail to provide specific factual allegations, courts routinely deny leave to send a collective action notice.â Gu v. T.C. Chikurin, Inc., No. CV 2013-2322, 2014 WL 1515877, at *4 (E.D.N.Y. Apr. 17, 2014); see also Zheng, 2013 WL 5132023, at *5 (denying motion for conditional certification where plaintiff neither identified allegedly similar employees nor explained the basis for her observations); McGlone, 867 F.Supp.2d at 444 (â[Plaintiffs] claim of company-wide policies is based on allegations made on âinformation and belief and not on his personal knowledge. Without more, [Plaintiff] has not satisfied his burden to show that a nationwide collective
Moreover, the Court finds that neither Kozakâs declaration nor his deposition testimony cures this defect. Although Kozak states that it was routine at âevery storeâ for SAs to work off the clock without pay, Kozak Decl. ¶ 7, his declaration reveals that he has personal knowledge only as to the Manhasset and arguably the Roosevelt Field Mall stores, id. ¶¶ 4, 9, 14. In this regard, his declaration is filled with vague references to unidentified GMs âcandidly discussing] Burberryâs [illegal] scheduling and payroll policies,â id. ¶¶ 13, 34, a âwidespread practice of permitting off[-]the[-]clock workâ in âevery Burberry store,â id. ¶ 30, and how he âwitnessed on a daily basis-âat numerous Burberry stores-Burberryâs policy of paying scheduled hours instead of the longer hours [SAs] actually worked,â id. ¶ 31. Kozak provides no further details whatsoever, including the identities of these other GMs or the locations of the stores referenced.
In addition, Plaintiffsâ reliance on Ko-zakâs statementsâin both his declaration and deposition testimonyâthat Regional Manager Hill told him that overtime pay was not authorized, is misplaced. Id. ¶ 4; Kozak Dep. at 86, 145. In this regard, Plaintiffs argue that â[t]he directions from Defendantâs Regional Manager Hill ânot to use overtimeâ were so emphatic, so pervasive and so frequently repeated ... that it was reasonable for Mr. Kozak to infer that Ms. Hill expressed Burberryâs uniform nationwide recordkeeping and overtime policies.â DE 67 at 2. Essentially, Plaintiffsâ argument boils down to the proposition that because a regional manager instructed Kozak personally not to use overtime, her statements must have reflected a national Burberry policy. The Court is not prepared to take such a leap. Rather than rely on âreasonable inferences,â Plaintiffs must provide â âactual evidence of a factual nexus between [them] situation and [the persons] [t]he[y] elaim[ ] are similarly situated.â â Guillen v. Marshalls of MA, Inc., 841 F.Supp.2d 797, 801 (E.D.N.Y.2012) (quoting Prizmic v. Armour, Inc., No. 05-CV-2503, 2006 WL 1662614, at *2 (E.D.N.Y. June 12, 2006)). Here, Plaintiffs have failed to provide any proof that they are similarly situated to SAs across the nation.- Because there is an insufficient basis to discern a common factual nexus among employees of all Burberry locations, Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification of a nationwide class of SAs employed by Burberry is DENIED.
As noted, Plaintiffs have provided a proposed Notice of Wage & Hour Lawsuit and Consent to Join form. DE 48, Ex. 7. Defendant asserts several objections to the Notice and Consent Form. The Court will address these objections in turn.
1.Burberry Locations
Plaintiffsâ Notice proposes that it be sent to all individuals who currently work, or formally worked, as an SA for Burberry since December 26, 2006. Defendant argues that the Notice is overly broad and should be limited to SAs employed by Burberry at the Manhasset, New York and Short Hills, New Jersey locations. The Court substantially agrees but finds that the Notice should also extend to all SAs employed at the Roosevelt Field Mall location, consistent with the decision above.
2.Sales Associates
Defendant maintains that in defining the putative class of hourly retail store associates as âSales Associates,â Plaintiffs erroneously seek to include all retail sales employees below manager level. DE 50 at 1 n. 2. According to Defendant, Burberryâs Private Client Consultants have different job duties and compensation and, therefore, cannot be similarly situated to Plaintiffs for purposes of conditional certification. Id. Plaintiffs do not disagree and propose sending Notice to the hourly paid Sales Associates and Sales Leads, excluding salaried Private Client Consultants. DE 49 at 1 n. 1. Defendant does not seek to exclude Sales Leads. DE 50 at 1, n. 7 and 4. Thus, the Court finds that the Notice should be sent to all Sales Associates and Sales Leads at the locations delineated above.
3.New York Claims
Plaintiffsâ Notice proposes that it be sent to Sales Associates employed by Defendant for a six-year period and references Defendantâs alleged liability under the FLSA as well as the New York Labor Law (âNYLLâ). Defendant argues that any reference to the NYLL must be stricken because Plaintiffs have failed to move for certification of these claims. In addition, Defendant asserts that because the statute of limitations period for FLSA claims is two or three years, as opposed to the six-year limitation period for NYLL claims, the notice period should be limited to three years.
The FLSA provides a two-year statute of limitations on actions to enforce its provisions unless the violation was willful, in which case the limitations period is three years. 29 U.S.C. § 255(a) (2006). Unlike FLSA claims, NYLL claims are subject to a six year statute of limitations. N.Y. Lab. Law § 198(3). Here, the Amended Complaint asserts claims under both the FLSA and the NYLL. See DE 16. In addition, it is clear from Plaintiffsâ motion papers that Plaintiffs are seeking certification of both their New York and fed-' eral claims. Because the collective action members are limited to three locations, the number of pertinent opt-ins is readily discernible and presumptively condensed in size. Courts in the Eastern District, including this Court, have held that where a case involves both NYLL and FLSA claims from a limited point of current and former employees, it promotes judicial economy to send notice of the lawsuit to all potential plaintiffs at the same time event though some individuals may only have timely NYLL claims. See Cohan v. Co
4. Opt-in Notices Returnable to the Court
The Notice directs opt-in plaintiffs to return their Consent forms to Plaintiffsâ counsel. Defendant requests that the Notice be modified to direct opt-in plaintiffs to file their Consent forms with the Clerk of the Court. Plaintiffs do not address this objection in their Reply papers.
The common practice in the Eastern District is to have opt-in plaintiffs send their consent forms to the Clerk of the Court rather than to plaintiffsâ counsel. See Brabham v. Mega Tempering & Glass Corp., No. 13 Civ. 54, 2013 WL 3357722, at *7 (E.D.N.Y. Jul. 3, 2013) (finding, among other things, that sending notice to the Clerk of Court âavoids the risk of delaying a tolling of the statute of limitations relating to an individual opt-in plaintiffs claims as a result of the turnaround time occasioned between receipt of a consent form by Plaintiffsâ counsel and the need to file the form with the Court. Thus, this practice is in the best interest of any opt-in Plaintiffâ); Rosario v. Valentine Avenue Discount Store, Co., 828 F.Supp.2d 508, 521 (E.D.N.Y.2011) (ordering that notice of pendency direct opt-in plaintiffs to file their consent forms with the Clerk of the Court and noting recent court decisions finding that returning forms to plaintiffs counsel âimplicitly discourages opt-in plaintiffs from selecting other counselâ); Bowens v. Atl. Maintenance Corp., 546 F.Supp.2d 55, 84-85 (E.D.N.Y.2008) (citing recent cases which found that requiring consent forms to be returned to plaintiffsâ counsel improperly discourages class members from seeking outside counsel and directing that Consent Forms be sent to the Clerk of Court); Iriarte, 2008 WL 2622929, at *4 (although plaintiff proposed that âindividuals deciding to opt in forward their completed consent forms to his counsel, ârecent decisions have held that such a provision improperly discourages class members from seeking outside counsel and thus, courts have directed that Consent Forms be sent to the Clerk of the Courtâ â) (citations omitted); Guzman v. VLM, Inc., No. 07 Civ. 1126, 2007 WL 2994278, at *9 (E.D.N.Y. Oct. 11, 2007) (noting defendantsâ objection to consent forms being returned to law offices of plaintiffsâ counsel and referencing the fact that the majority of courts direct parties to submit opt-in forms to the clerk of court, court directed that consent forms be returned to the Clerk of the Court). Accordingly, the Court finds that the appropriate course of action here is to have the consent forms returned to the Clerk of the Court. Plaintiffsâ counsel is directed to update the Notice according to this directive.
5. Dissemination of the Notice
Plaintiffs seek to disseminate the Notice via first-class mail and email, as well as
a. Email Dissemination
Plaintiffs cite one case from this Circuit authorizing email notification. In Ritz v. Mike Rory Corp., No. 12 CV 367, 2013 WL 1799974, at *5 (E.D.N.Y. Apr. 30, 2013), the Court stated in one sentence at the end of its decision that plaintiffs counsel was authorized to send the notice to all class members by first-class mail and email. There is no indication in the decision that defendant objected to email notification. Id.
In opposition to Plaintiffsâ request, Defendant points out two decisions from this CircuitâHintergerger v. Catholic Health Sys., No. 08-CV-380S, 2009 WL 3464134 (W.D.N.Y. Oct. 21, 2009) and Gordon v. Kaleida Health, No. 08-CV-378S, 2009 WL 3334784 (W.D.N.Y. Oct. 14, 2009), both of which were issued by Judge Skret-ny in the Western District. Citing Karvaly v. eBay, Inc., 245 F.R.D. 71, 91 (E.D.N.Y.2007) and Reab v. Elec. Arts, Inc., 214 F.R.D. 623, 630 (D.Colo.2002), Judge Skretny noted that â[hjistorically, first class mailing has been utilized because it provides a controlled method by which individual notification can be provided through a reliable process which ensures that proper notice is received by the potential class members.â Hintergerger, 2009 WL 3464134, at *13; Gordon, 2009 WL 3334784, at *11 (internal quotation marks omitted). In addition, notification by electronic mail could create risks of distortion or misleading notification through modification of the notice itself or the addition of commentary. Hintergerger, 2009 WL 3464134, at *13; Gordon, 2009 WL 3334784, at *11; Karvaly, 245 F.R.D. at 91; Reab, 214 F.R.D. at 630.
Here in the Eastern District, Judge Glasser was not persuaded that notice to class members by electronic mail, âthough clearly more convenient and less expensive for the parties, is an adequate substitute for the traditional method of notifying prospective class members by first-class mail.â Karvaly, 245 F.R.D. at 91. In Karvaly, he went on to observe that:
electronic communication inherently has the potential to be copied and forwarded to other people via the internet with commentary that could distort the notice approved by the Court. Electronic mail heightens the risk that the communication will be reproduced to large numbers of people who could compromise the integrity of the notice process. In addition, email messages could be forwarded to nonclass members and posted to internet sites with great ease.
Id. at 91 (quoting Reab, 214 F.R.D. at 630).
This Court shares these concerns. Moreover, in the instant circumstances, the universe of collective action members is limited and first-class mail is an adequate means to disseminate the Notice. Accordingly, Plaintiffsâ request to disseminate the Notice via email is denied.
Citing Hintergerger, 2009 WL 3464134, at *13 and Gordon, 2009 WL 3334784, at *11, Defendant argues that on-site posting is unnecessary because Burberry can provide accurate mailing addresses for current employees. DE 50 at 22. Plaintiffs, on the other hand, rely on Mendoza v. Ashiya Sushi 5, Inc., No. 12 Civ. 8629, 2013 WL 5211839, at *9 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 16, 2013) for the proposition that workplace posting is routine. DE 47 at 19.
In Mendoza, the court noted that â[cjourts routinely approve the posting of notice on employee bulletin boards and in common employee spaces.â 2013 WL 5211839, at *9 (citing Whitehorn v. Wolfgangâs Steakhouse, Inc., 767 F.Supp.2d 445, 449 (S.D.N.Y.2011) and Malloy v. Richard Fleischman & Assocs. Inc., No. 09 Civ. 322, 2009 WL 1585979, at *4 (S.D.N.Y. June 3, 2009)); see also Garcia v. Pancho Villaâs of Huntington Vill., Inc., 678 F.Supp.2d 89, 96 (E.D.N.Y.2010) (â[W]hile defendants object to the posting of the Notice at their business locationsâ and request an order prohibiting itâsuch a practice has been routinely approved in other cases.â). The Court finds Plaintiffsâ request is appropriate, especially since Defendant does not explain how such a posting would be burdensome. Consequently, the Court hereby authorizes the posting of the Notice and Consent to Join form in a common, non-public employee space of the Manhasset, Roosevelt Field Mall, and Short Hills locations where they will be easily visible to employees.
c. Website Posting of Notice
Lastly, Plaintiffs propose publishing a website providing additional information about the case, including copies of the pleadings and certain filings, where putative opt-in plaintiffs could submit a Consent to Join Form online. DE 47 at 21. In support of this request, Plaintiffs cite three eases from outside this Circuit where such a website was authorized. Id. Defendant makes no specific objection to use of a website. Notwithstanding that fact, the Court points out that this is not a nationwide class but rather a limited group involving three store locations. In addition, given the Courtâs finding, discussed supra, that consent forms should be returned to the Clerk of the Court, Plaintiffsâ request is denied.
6. Calculating the Starting Date for Purposes of Notice
Plaintiffsâ motion proposes that notice be sent to Sales Associates employed by Defendant six years before the filing of the Complaint. Defendant, on the other hand, maintains that because a putative collective action memberâs claim is not tolled until the individual consents to join the action, 29 U.S.C. § 256(b), the starting date for the look-back period should be the date of the Courtâs Order granting Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification. DE 50 at 23-24. â[Sjome courts in this Circuit have calculated the time period for provision of notice from three years prior to the date of the relevant order, rather than three years prior to the complaint.â Robles v. Liberty Rest. Supply, Corp., 2013 WL 6684954, at *10 (E.D.N.Y. Dec. 18, 2013) (citing Enriquez v. Cherry Hill Market Corp., 2012 WL 440691, at *3 (E.D.N.Y. Feb. 10, 2012)). Because equitable tolling issues often arise for prospective plaintiffs, however, other courts in this Circuit have calculated the three-year period from the date of the complaint. Whitehorn v. Wolfgangâs Steakhouse, Inc., 767 F.Supp.2d 445, 451 (S.D.N.Y.2011); see also Robles, 2013 WL 6684954, at *10; Winfield v. Citibank, N.A., 843 F.Supp.2d 397, 410 (S.D.N.Y.2012); Thompson v. World Alliance Fin. Corp., No. 08 Civ. 4951, 2010 WL 3394188, at *7 (E.D.N.Y.
7. Production of Class Information
Plaintiffs request an order directing Defendant to produce the names, last known mailing addresses, work and personal phone numbers, email addresses, and social security numbers for all potential class members employed by them for the relevant time period. DE 47 at 20. Plaintiffs contend that based on the prior experience of Plaintiffsâ counsel in similar cases, a large percentage of consent forms are typically returned as undeliverable. Id. Defendant objects to Plaintiffsâ request to the extent Plaintiffs seek personal home and cell phone numbers, email addresses and social security numbers on the grounds that such disclosure would violate the employeesâ privacy rights.
In general, it is appropriate for courts in collective actions to order the discovery of names, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, and dates of employment of potential collective members. See, e.g., Puglisi v. TD Bank, N.A., 998 F.Supp.2d 95, 102 (E.D.N.Y.2014) (âIn regard to requests for names, last known addresses, telephone numbers (both home and mobile), e-mail addresses, and dates of employment, courts often grant this kind of request in connection with a conditional certification of an FLSA collective action.â) (internal quotations and citations omitted); Rosario, 828 F.Supp.2d at 522 (âThe Court finds the disclosure of potential opt-in plaintiffsâ names, last known addresses, telephone numbers, and dates of employment to be appropriate.â); In re Penthouse Executive Club Comp. Litig., No. 10 Civ. 1145(NRB), 2010 WL 4340255, at *5-6 (S.D.N.Y. Oct. 26, 2010) (finding the disclosure of names, addresses, telephone numbers, and dates of employment to be âessential to identifying potential opt-in plaintiffsâ). With regard to social security numbers, however, courts typically decline to allow discovery in the first instance. Velasquez v. Digital Page, Inc., No. CV 11-3892, 2014 WL 2048425, at *15 (E.D.N.Y. May 19, 2014); Rosario, 828 F.Supp.2d at 522; Whitehorn, 767 F.Supp.2d at 448. Thus, the Court is directing Defendant to provide Plaintiffs with a list of the names, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, and dates of employment for all potential class members employed by them for the relevant time period. The list is to be furnished within 14 days of the entry of this Order and is to be treated by the parties as confidential. To the extent that the parties have not previously entered into a Stipulation and Order of Confidentiality, they are ordered to do so forthwith for this purpose. If Plaintiffs are unable to effectuate notice on some potential opt-in plaintiffs with the information that is produced, Plaintiffs may renew their application for social security numbers.
8. The Time Limit to Opt-in
Defendant objects to Plaintiffsâ proposed Notice to the extent it provides 60 days for Plaintiffs to opt-in. Instead, Defendant requests that the opt-in period be limited to 45 days. DE 50 at 24. Defendant proffers no authority for its position that a 45-day opt-in period is appropriate.
Courts in this Circuit routinely restrict the opt-in period to 60 days. Hernandez v. Immortal Rise, Inc., No. 11-CV-4360, 2012 WL 4369746, at *7 (E.D.N.Y. Sept. 24, 2012); Moore, 276 F.R.D. at 61; Whitehorn, 767 F.Supp.2d at 451-52; Sexton v. Franklin First Fin., Ltd., No. 08-CV-4950, 2009 WL 1706535, at *12
9. Reminder Notices
Plaintiffs request that the Court authorize Plaintiffs to send out a deadline reminder notice to putative class members. DE 47 at 22. Defendant has not articulated any objection. In light of the fact that Defendant has not objected to a reminder notice, the Court grants Plaintiffsâ request. See Chhab v. Darden Rests., Inc., No. 11 Civ. 8345, 2013 WL 5308004, at *16 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 20, 2013) (âGiven that notice under the FLSA is intended to inform as many potential plaintiffs as possible of the collective action and their right to opt-in, we find that a reminder notice is appropriate.â); see also Puglisi, 998 F.Supp.2d at 102 (authorizing plaintiffs to circulate reminder forms); Limarvin v. Edo Rest. Corp., No. 11 Civ. 7356, 2013 WL 371571, at *3-4 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 21, 2013) (same). Thus, Plaintiffs are authorized to distribute a reminder notice prior to the expiration of the opt-in period to alert potential plaintiffs that the deadline is coming due.
E. Plaintiffsâ Motions to Compel 1. Nationwide Sampling
As noted above, prior to filing their Motion for Conditional Certification, Plaintiffs filed a motion to compel Defendant to produce names and contact information of a 25% sample of the putative FLSA collective members and complete time and payroll records for a 10% sample group. DE 43 at 1-2. In light of the fact that the Court has denied Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification with regard to a nationwide class, Plaintiffsâ motion to compel a representative sample of nationwide employee data is denied. See Zheng v. Good Fortune Supermarket Group (USA), Inc., No. 13-CV-60, 2013 WL 5132023, at *8 (E.D.N.Y. Sept. 12, 2013) (âUpon certification of a collective action under the FLSA, âit is appropriate for a district court to permit the discovery of the names and addresses of employees.â However, where a party has failed to make a modest factual showing of the existence of similarly situated potential plaintiffs, such discovery is unwarranted.â) (quoting Charles v. Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co., No. 09 CV 94, 2010 WL 7132173, at *3 (E.D.N.Y. May 27, 2010)); see also Prizmic, 2006 WL 1662614, at *3 (denying order for disclosure of names and addresses of potential plaintiffs where plaintiff provided insufficient facts for his claim that a class of similarly situated FLSA plaintiffs exists) (collecting cases). Since Plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that conditional certification of their FLSA claim as a nationwide collective action is appropriate, the Court denies Plaintiffsâ discovery request.
2. Records from the Manhasset, Roosevelt Field Mall and Short Hills Location
Plaintiffs seek complete time and payroll records for all former and current SAs employed since 2006 at the Manhasset, New York store and since 2009 at the Short Hills, New Jersey store. Defendant objects to Plaintiffsâ request on the sole basis that Plaintiffs never sought such documents in a written document demand. In light of the fact that the Court has found that Plaintiffs have demonstrated that SAs and Sales Leads at these stores are similarly situated to the Plaintiffs, the Court now directs Defendant to produce these documents with regard to SAs as well as Sales Leads at these two locations. In addition, since the Court has also found that SAs and Sales Leads at the Roosevelt Field Mall, New York location are also
Plaintiffs also seek performance evaluations, weekly schedules and handwritten sign in/out time sheets for all SAs assigned to Defendantâs Manhasset, New York and Short Hills, New Jersey locations. DE 64. Defendant opposes the motion as duplica-tive of Plaintiffsâ first motion to compel and argues that class-wide discovery is premature prior to certification in âą an FLSA case. Notwithstanding its opposition, Defendant agrees to provide the requested documents for the Manhasset SAs for the relevant statutory liability period only. DE 65 at 1-2.
Defendantâs arguments about the alleged impropriety of pre-certification discovery are now moot with regard to the SAs and Sales Leads employed at the three Burberry stores which the Court has certified. Accordingly, Defendant is directed to produce performance evaluations, weekly schedules and handwritten sign-in/sign-out time sheets for all former and current Sales Associates and Sales Leads employed since 2006 at the Manhasset and Roosevelt Field Mall, New York stores and since 2009 at the Short Hills, New Jersey store. Defendant shall produce these documents to Plaintiffs by October 10, 2014.
3. Burberry Employee Handbook
Plaintiffs request that Defendant produce each employee handbook distributed by Defendant to its SAs. Defendant opposes Plaintiffsâ request for the complete employee handbook on the grounds that the handbook contains a large number of policies which have no bearing on this action. Apparently, Burberryâs counsel produced the handbook table of contents to Plaintiffs and invited Plaintiffsâ counsel to identify the other policies which they believe are relevant after reviewing the table of contents. DE 44 at 3. According to Defendant, Plaintiffs refused to take Burberry up on this offer. Id.
The Court finds that Defendantâs offer is reasonable. If Plaintiffs intend to pursue this information, counsel is directed to inform Defendantâs counsel by September 11, 2014 as to what portions of the handbook they seek based on their review of the table of contents. Defendantâs counsel will then have ten (10) days to produce the responsive material.
III. Conclusion
For all of the foregoing reasons, Plaintiffsâ Motion for Conditional Certification of an FLSA collective action pursuant to Section 216(b) is GRANTED, subject to the limitations discussed in this Decision and Order. In sum, the Court certifies the following group:
All Sales Associates and Sales Leads currently and/or formerly employed by Burberry at the Manhasset and Roosevelt Field Mall, New York locations for a period of six years prior to the date of filing the Complaint in this action (December 26, 2012) to the present, and all Sales Associates and Sales Leads currently and/or formerly employed by Burberry at the Short
The Court further orders that:
1. Within 14 days of entry of this Order, Defendant or its designated representatives shall cause a copy of the names, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, and dates of employment for (a) all potential class members employed by Burberry at the Manhasset and Roosevelt Field Mall, New York locations on ,or after December 26, 2006; and (b) all potential class members employed by Burberry at the Short Hills, New Jersey location on or after December 26, 2009, to be served upon counsel for the Plaintiffs. This list is to be treated by the parties as confidential;
2. The proposed Notice of Pendency and Consent to Join form is approved, subject to the modifications discussed in this Order;
3. Within 30 days after the entry of this Order, the Plaintiffs or their designated representatives shall cause a copy of the Notice of Pendency and Consent to Join form to be mailed by first-class to all of the potential opt-in plaintiffs and posted at the three Burberry locations set forth above consistent with the limitations discussed in this Order;
4. Defendant is required to produce complete time and payroll records, performance evaluations, weekly schedules and handwritten sign in/out time sheets for all former and current Sales Associates and Sales Leads employed since 2006 at the Manhasset and Roosevelt Field Mall, New York stores and employed since 2009 at the Short Hills, New Jersey store. Defendant shall produce complete time and payroll records to Plaintiffs by September 30, 2014. Defendant shall produce performance evaluations, weekly schedules and handwritten sign in/out time sheets to Plaintiffs by October 10, 2014;
5. Plaintiffs are directed to inform Defendantâs counsel by September 11, 2014 as to what portions of the employee handbook they seek based on their review of the handbook table of contents; and
6. The Final Case Management Order is being entered separately.
SO ORDERED.
. The declarations submitted by the Plaintiffs are largely identical.
. Plaintiffs do not seek to conditionally certify the overtime on commission claim alleged in their Amended Complaint. DE 16.
. In any event, the Court has reviewed Plaintiffsâ Declarations as well as the deposition testimony which was provided, and the Courtâs preliminary assessment is that the two are not as inconsistent as Defendant suggests. Plaintiffs Simon, Jarin and Roach all averred in their declarations that it was Burberryâs policy that SAs were to record only scheduled hours on weekly timesheets to avoid showing overtime. See Simon Decl. ¶ 9; Jarin Deck V 9; Roach Deck ¶ 9. Consistent with their declarations, they all testified at their depositions that while they were managed by Kozak, they were instructed to record scheduled time only and not actual hours worked. Simon Dep. at 31; Jarin Dep. at 63; Roach Dep. at 39. However, all three testified that following Kozakâs termination in January 2012, they were instructed to record their actual time worked. Simon Dep. at 31-32, 83-84; Jarin Dep. at 63-65; Roach Dep. at 38-39. Defendant neglects to mention, however, that Simon also testified that although the manager who replaced Kozak instructed the SAs to record actual time worked, when that manager was no longer in charge, they "went back to the same way [they] were doing things when [Kozak] was in charge.â Simon Dep. at 31-32. In addition, Roach testified that although he was told by Regional Manager Hill to record actual time after Kozak's termination, he was also told by other managers to record only scheduled time. Roach Dep. at 62.
. Plaintiffs seek certification of all SAs employed by Burberry nationwide from December 26, 2009 to the present, and all SAs employed by Burberry in New York from December 26, 2006 to the present. Because the Court finds that Plaintiffs papers do not support nationwide certification, see infra, but do support certification of SAs in the Short Hills, New Jersey location, the Court grants this more limited relief.
. The Court is aware that when asked at his deposition whether he had "any factual basis to believe that Burberry has a nationwide practice of requiring [SAs] to work off the clock without pay,â Kozak answered in the negative, in seemingly direct contradiction to
. Because these two stores are located in New York, the six-year limitation period under the NYLL applies.
. As discussed above, at the time Plaintiffs filed their Motion for Conditional Certification, Plaintiffs submitted declarations from SAs from the Manhasset, New York and Short Hills, New Jersey locations only. Thereafter, Plaintiffs sought to supplement the record by adding the declaration of an SA who worked at the Roosevelt Field Mall, New York location, and the Court has granted that motion.