The City of Fredericksburg is facing a new lawsuit, this time from its first responders.
Sixteen of the city’s EMTs have filed suit against the city, alleging they have been unlawfully deprived of three years worth of overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The plaintiffs, who the suit states have performed work for the city as paramedics, EMTs, EMT-A (advanced EMTs) and paramedic trainees, have “continued to regularly work in excess of 40 hours a week,” with that time failed to be compensated at 1.5x their hourly rate.
The EMTs say that they and other “similarly situated employees” are regularly scheduled to work either 48 or 72 hours per week over a two month period, depending on Kelly days, or designated days off. Their suit seeks all back pay from January 22, 2022, as well as the group’s attorneys’ fees.
That exact amount isn’t known. The suit alleges that the city is in the “exclusive possession” of the plaintiffs’ employment and work records.
hyperbole reached out with questions regarding the release of those records.
“All city employees have access to their payroll records either through an online portal or if they do not have email/computer access, through Human Resources and / or Finance Department,” Fredericksburg Communication Manager Sonja Cantu responded via email.
“The complaint does not allege a precise damage calculation and instead relies on damages (if any) to be discovered through the course of litigation.”
Cantu says the city employs nineteen EMTS total, a figure that’s remained steady since 2022.
When it comes to first responders like police and firefighters, many cities and public agencies use a partial exemption provided by the FLSA called 207(k). That provision establishes a separate work period for calculating overtime between 7 and 28 days. Employee overtime is determined based on the number of excess hours worked during those defined periods, which for law enforcement officers is all time over 171 work hours and for firefighters is 212 hours.
But the 207(k) doesn’t apply to all first responders and instead is reserved for employees engaged in “fire protection activities.”
The sixteen EMTs’ suit alleges that the plaintiffs don’t extinguish fires, stating that as staff members they lack the “legal authority” and necessary training. They also say they aren’t required to obtain or hold any firefighter certifications and that the majority of plaintiffs have been issued expired fire equipment, though did not clarify as to which items.
“Defendant has not provided training to Plaintiffs in fire suppression duties beyond a 48-hour awareness-style class,” the filing states. They cite two cases, Lockwood v. Prince George’s County and Lawrence v. City of Philadelphia, which in those instances found that paramedics were not responsible for fire protection activities and were due overtime for a standard 40 hour work week.
Cantu provided hyperbole with a July 2024 memo that was distributed to fire department staff, providing clarity to the city’s position.
“City Firefighter/Medics with requisite training meet the criteria of having authority and responsibility to engage in fire suppression based on factors including but not limited to being equipped with turnout gear, responding to fire and HAZMAT calls other than solely medical emergencies, and being expected to have duties including performing work around the perimeter of a burning building or vehicle including laying hoses,” it read.
When asked if the city faced any other staff complaints regarding overtime, Cantu responded that “the City has no knowledge of disputes of similar nature related to FLSA in public safety.”
The EMTs have requested a trial by jury. Currently they are awaiting their case to be assigned to a judge in the Eastern District Court of Virginia. The plaintiffs could not be reached for comment.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2023), the mean hourly wage for EMTs nationally stands at $20.72 per hour, for a salary just over $43,000 annually.
