Ojeda-Sanchez et al v. Bland Farms, LLC et al

Filing 325

ORDER directing the Plaintiffs to file amended damages calculations within 10 days of this Order. Bland is ordered to submit a response within 10 days of Plaintiffs' filing. Signed by Judge B. Avant Edenfield on 04/25/2011. (lmm) Modified on 4/25/2011 (lmm).

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
STATESBORO DIVISION
DAVID OJEDA SANCHEZ, et al.,
Plaintiffs,
V.

6:08-cv-96

BLAND FARMS, LLC,
Defendant.

S) 1P)
Plaintiffs in this case are H-2A guest
workers in Defendant Bland Farms's
("Bland") onion planting and harvesting
operations. They assert several claims
against Bland for violations of the Fair
Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"), see 29
U.S.C. § 201 et seq, and for breach of
contract.
The operative complaint in this action
includes six claims for relief: (1) violation
of FLSA minimum wage provisions; (2)
breach of contract for failure to pay contract
wage; (3) breach of contract for failure to
pay transportation expenses; (4) violation of
FLSA anti-retaliation provisions; (5)
violation of contract anti-retaliation
provisions; and (6) breach of contract for
failure to pay federal minimum wage. See
Doc. 119. These claims can be more
generally categorized as wage claims and
retaliation claims.
Plaintiffs' wage claims include five subissues: (1) whether Defendant properly
recorded the start and end of work each day;
(2) whether Defendant properly accounted

for Plaintiffs' lunch time; (3) whether
Defendant compensated Plaintiffs for the
correct amount of time spent in orientation
at the beginning of each season; (4) the
amount of travel and immigration expenses
to which Plaintiffs are entitled; and (5) the
amount of the housing credit to which
Defendant is entitled in the final calculation
of compensation.
But even if Bland under-recorded
Plaintiffs' hours, it may not have breached
its FLSA or contractual obligations because
Bland paid Plaintiffs on a piece rate and may
have paid Plaintiffs more than the required
contract or FLSA minimum wages.
As to transportation claims, Bland would
not be liable for failing to reimburse
expenses if the wages it paid, plus any wage
credit, were higher than Plaintiffs' hours
worked times the minimum wage plus these
expenses. See Morales-A rcadio v. Shannon
Produce Farms, Inc., 2007 WL 2106188, at
*2 (S.D. Ga. July 18, 2007).
Both parties submitted damages
calculations to make these necessary
comparisons, but each based their
calculations on the facts as they argued them
to exist. The Court adopts neither party's
proposed factual findings or conclusions of
law wholesale. Therefore, neither party's
calculations are helpful to the court.
For this reason, the Court left evidence
open at the conclusion of the bench trial and
will allow both parties to supplement the
record with their damages tabulations based
on the Court's preliminary findings before
the Court determines whether, and by how
much, Bland breached either the FLSA or
their contractual obligations.

The parties are ordered to submit
amended calculations based on the

following preliminary findings:

(8) Bland proved it acted in good faith
such that liquidated damages will not
be assessed.

(1) Plaintiffs failed to prove their
entitlement to any additional amount
in damages for any hotel stay in
Monterrey, Mexico;

Taking the foregoing findings of fact
into consideration, the amended calculations
shall reflect the following:
(1) Contract Damages, not including
first work week wages:

(2) Plaintiffs failed to prove their
entitlement to any additional amount
in subsistence payments for their
trips from their homes in Mexico to
Bland;

Contract Wages (Hours x AEWR) Amount paid = Unpaid Contract
Wages.

(3) Plaintiffs failed to prove Bland
willfully violated the FLSA;

Unpaid Contract Wages + Interest =
Contract Damages.

(4) Plaintiffs are entitled to an additional
one and one half (1.5) hours of
compensable time in each season in
which they worked at Bland for the
total time spent in orientation
sessions;

(2) FLSA Damages, not including first
work week wages:
Minimum Wages Owed (Hours x
Minimum Wage) - Amount paid $42 housing credit per week = FLSA
Damages.

(5) Plaintiffs are entitled to an additional
thirty (30) minutes of compensable
field working time per week for time
they worked either before Bland
began their recorded time or after
Bland stopped their recorded time;

(3) First Week's Damages (which is the
same for contract claims and FLSA
claims because Plaintiffs define the
contract breach as Defendant's
failure to abide by the FLSA):
First week's FLSA Wage Damages
+ bus fare + immigration expenses Amount paid = First Week's
Damages.

(6) Plaintiffs for whom Bland
automatically deducted one hour for
lunch are entitled to an additional
forty-five (45) minutes per day of
compensable time;

To ensure that the parties understand the
Court's direction and strictly adhere to it, the
Court is attaching to this order a document
setting out the headings Plaintiffs are to use
in creating spreadsheets in response to this
order.

(7) Bland is entitled to take a forty-two
dollar ($42) per week per plaintiff
housing credit for the housing it
provided Plaintiffs; and

Each season will have three spreadsheets
that correspond to the calculations outlined
2

above, titled Contract Damages, FLSA
Damages, and First Week's Damages. In
addition, one spreadsheet will be completed
that covers all seasons, titled Damages
Election and Total. The Damages Election
and Total spreadsheet is to include a
separate entry for each season that each
Plaintiff claims damages. For example, one
Plaintiff may have five consecutive entries
under his name if he worked for five
different seasons. These seasons shall then
be added together to show a subtotal for
each Plaintiff's damages. The spreadsheet
will also include a grand total of all damages
for all Plaintiffs.
Plaintiffs are ordered to file amended
damages calculations within ten (10) days of
the date of this order. Bland is ordered to
submit its response within ten (10) days of
Plaintiffs' filing. The Court will not accept
any replies. The parties are cautioned to
provide the Court with only the information
requested, and not to use their respective
filings to continue legal or factual argument.

This t- day of April 2011.

ft

B. AVAN EDENFIELD/IJDGE
UNITED STATES DIST4ICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA

3

Contract Damages

Workweek
Plaintiff End Date

Contract Wages
Owed (Hours x
AEWR)

Hours
worked

Unpaid K Wages (K
Wages - Amount
Amount Paid Paid)

Interest on Unpaid K
Wages

Amount Paid Housing Credit

Total K
Damages
with Interest

FLSA Damages: Minimum
Wages Owed - Amount
Paid - Housing Credit

FLSA Damages
Minimum Wages
Owed (Hours x
minimum wage)

Workweek Hours
Plaintiff End Date
worked

$42
$42
$42
$42

First Week's Damages

Workweek
Plaintiff End Date

Minimum Wages
Owed (Hours x
minimum wage)

Hours
worked

FLSA Wage Damages:
Minimum Wages Owed -
All compensable
Amount Paid - Housing
Immigration
Credit
All Bus Fare Expenses*

Amount Paid Housing Credit
$42
$42
$42
$42

incivaes banamex i-ee, visa t-ee, ana

i-4

tee. see uoc. 2b4 at

-14.

Damages Election and Total

Plaintiff Season
P1
Spring 2006
Fall 2006
P1
P1
ISpring 2007
P1 Subtotal
P2
ISpring 2005
Grand total

Contract
Damages

1I

FLSA Damages

First Weeks
Damages

Election

I

Total Damages: (Either
FLSA or Contract
Damages + First Weeks
Damages)

I

I

First Weeks Damages: FLSA
Wage Damages + Bus Fare +
Immigration - Amount Paid