Class Action Against NJ Garbage Collection Co. Recommences Over Non-Payment of 2012 Settlement

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Jersey City, New Jersey waste collection company Joseph Smentkowski, Inc., which operates as Galaxy Carting and/or Smentkowski Garbage Removal, and an individual with control over the business are staring down a proposed class and collective action seeking to recover allegedly unpaid overtime wages. The named plaintiff, who worked for the defendants at various times between 2009 and 2014, claims he was paid a flat daily rate regardless of the number of hours he worked over 40 each week. Though the lawsuit, filed on September 20, is on its surface related to allegedly unpaid wages, the background of the case goes much deeper.

The complaint notes that on June 9, 2017, a judge gave final approval to a more than $300,000 settlement stemming from a previous class action filed by the plaintiff in late 2012 against Galaxy Recycling, Inc. and the defendants in this action. According to the complaint, the defendants, to date, have failed to remit the required payments agreed upon in that settlement. 

“Due to Smentkowski’s failure to remit timely settlement payments, [the plaintiff] now recommences his class against [the defendants] for unpaid overtime compensation dating back to December 7, 2010,” the lawsuit reads.