Planet Fitness has just been sued by its employees in New York alleging they went underpaid in accordance with New York Labor Law (“NYLL”). The class action lawsuit was filed this past Wednesday, January 19, 2022, and seeks to recover untimely wage compensation and other damages for similarly situated hourly manual workers. Affected employees include allmember service representatives, fitness trainers, front desk employees, and other employees in similar hourly positions who work or have worked as manual workers for Planet Fitness in New York State between June 5, 2015 and the date of final judgment in this matter.
Despite being considered manual workers under NYLL due tothe amount of physical labor required for the job, Planet Fitness compensated these affected employees on a bi-weekly basis. Over twenty-five percent of these employees’ duties were physical tasks. These tasks included but are not limited to: 1) wiping down equipment; (2) mopping and sweeping floors; (3) moving trash bags; (4) lifting up to 50 pounds; and (5) continued standing and walking during shifts. Defendants further advertised Plaintiff’s to have “physical demands,” including “continual standing and walking during shift” and “be[ing] able to occasionally lift up to 50 lbs.” NYLL requires that manual workers be paid their wages within seven calendar days after the end of the week in which those wages were earned. In this regard, Planet Fitness failed to provide timely wages to all similarly situated manual workers.
Additionally, Planet Fitness’ manual workers in New York were required to work shifts of over ten (10) hours and/or split shifts. If an employee works over ten hours or a split shift in a day, and is paid the applicable minimum wage, they are entitled to spread of hours pay under NYLL. Despite paying Manual Workers in New York the applicable minimum wage and requiring them to work shifts of over ten hours, they were not paid the requiredspread of hours pay.
Our nations hardest workers deserve to be paid in a timely manner. Industries such as retail, maintenance and construction are all very hands on and states such as New York require them to be paid weekly and be entitled to additional pay if working long hours. If you’ve worked for a Planet Fitness in the state of New York or in a different industry as a manual worker and have questions about your pay, call us at (212)300-0375 for a free and confidential phone consultation or visit our website for more information.
You can also view the filed complaint here.