Henry et al v. Community of Hope Center, Inc. et al

Filing 49

ORDER directing the Clerk of Court to enter enter judgment against Community of Hope Center, Inc. d/b/a Walter Wesley Joyner Academy and in favor of Plaintiff Carolyn Home in the amount of $870.40. The Clerk shall send a service copy of this Order to the following address: Community of Hope Center, Inc. c/o Mr. Johnny Vaughn at Post Office Box 1072, Dublin, Georgia 31040. Signed by Judge Dudley H. Bowen on 03/23/2017. (thb)

FILED

U.S. DISTRICT COUR
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
DUBLIN DIVISION

StNUlST. 0

*
*

HORNE,

-mv.

201? MAR 23 PM ?*
''

WILLIE MACK HENRY, BRIAN POWELL, *
SHAUN POWELL, MELVIN THOMAS, EBB *

O'NEAL, JR., AUTHOR LEE HAVARD,
CHARLINE WRIGHT, and CAROLYN

l '^"" i lST;i niw

*
*

Plaintiffs,

*
*

V.

*

CV 314-118

5

COMMUNITY OF HOPE CENTER, INC.,

*

d/b/a WALTER WESLEY JOYNER

*

ACADEMY and JOHNNY VAUGHN,

*
*

Defendants.

*

ORDER

On March 1, 2017, this Court entered default judgment in

favor of all named Plaintiffs in this action except Plaintiff
Carolyn

Home

because

respecting her damages.

no

evidence

had

been

submitted

On March 14, 2017, Plaintiff Home

submitted an affidavit in support of her damages claim against

Defendant Community of Hope Center, Inc. d/b/a Walter Wesley
Joyner Academy (the "Academy") under the Fair Labor Standards
Act ("FLSA"), 29 U.S.C. § 201 et seg.

Plaintiff Home seeks

unpaid overtime wages.

Incorporating herein the findings of fact and conclusions
of law set forth in the Order of March 1, 2017, Plaintiff

Home is entitled to default judgment.

"[T] hree distinct

matters [are] essential in considering any default judgment:

(1) jurisdiction; (2) liability; and (3) damages."

Pitts ex

rel. Pitts V. Seneca Sports, Inc.. 321 F. Supp. 2d 1353, 1356

(S.D. Ga. 2004).

complaint

In sum, the allegations of the instant

establishes

this

Court

has

jurisdiction.

The

complaint also establishes that Plaintiff Home was employed
by the Academy and treated as an exempt employee under the
FLSA when in fact she was not.

Consequently, Plaintiff Home

worked overtime hours for which she was not paid when in fact
she should have been.

Moreover, the Academy's failure to pay

overtime wages to Plaintiff Home was ''willful" within the
meaning

of

the

FLSA.^

Thus,

the

Academy

is

liable

to

Plaintiff for overtime pay and statutory damages.
With respect to Plaintiff Home's damages, under § 207 of
the FLSA, "an employer may not employ his employee for a

workweek longer than forty hours unless his employee receives
overtime compensation at a rate not less than one and a half

times his regular rate."

Allen v. Bd. of Pub. Educ. for Bibb

Cntv.. 495 F.3d 1306, 1314 (11th Cir. 2007) (citing 29 U.S.C.
§ 207(a)(1)).

In this case, Plaintiff Home worked 40 hours

of overtime from the period of June 3, 2013 to August 1, 2013.

^ The allegation of willfulness is important because a
district court has no discretion to reduce or deny an award of
liquidated damages under 29 U.S.C. § 216(b) if the FLSA
violation was willful.

Morgan v. Familv Dollar Stores. Inc..

551 F.3d 1233, 1282-83 (11^^ Cir. 2008).

(See Aff. of Carolyn Home, HH 4-5.)

Her overtime rate of

compensation for that time period would have been $10.88.
(Id.. ^ 8.) Plaintiff Home should have been paid $435.20 (40

X

$10.88)

in

overtime

during

that

therefore owed $435.20 in overtime

time

period;

she

is

wages and $435.20 in

statutory damages, for a total damages award of $870.40.
Upon the foregoing, the Clerk of Court is directed to

ENTER JUDGMENT against Community of Hope Center, Inc. d/b/a
Walter Wesley Joyner Academy and in favor of Plaintiff Carolyn
Home in the amount of $870.40.

The Clerk shall send a service copy of this Order to the
following address:
Community of Hope Center, Inc.

c/o Mr. Johnny Vaughn
Post Office Box 1072

Dublin, Georgia 31040

ORDER ENTERED at Augusta, Georgia, this
March, 2017.

UNITED STATES DISTRICT

day of