Novartis AG’s sales representatives are covered by federal wage-and-hour laws requiring payment of overtime, the U.S. Labor Department said, asking a federal court to reverse dismissal of a lawsuit.
Current and former members of the U.S. sales force of the Basel, Switzerland-based company sued in federal court in New York in 2006 claiming they should have been paid overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act. U.S. District Judge Paul A. Crotty dismissed the suit in January, finding they weren’t entitled to overtime pay as either “outside salespersons” or “administrative employees.”
Workers at the Novartis Pharmaceutical Corp. unit appealed the dismissal to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York. The U.S. filed a so-called amicus brief on Oct. 13 supporting the workers’ position.
“Under the department’s regulations, the reps do not meet the requirements for either the outside sales or administrative exemption,” government lawyers said in the filing. The workers don’t sell directly to doctors or exercise independent judgment on significant matters, the U.S. said.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=anvrQiqo0itw
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