Field Technician Claims Utiliquest Denied Wages for Commuting in Company Vehicles

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Utiliquest, LLC has been named in a proposed class action filed by a former field technician who claims he and other employees were not properly compensated for their travel time in company-owned vehicles. According to the suit, field technicians were responsible for performing utility maintenance services and were required to drive company vehicles from their homes to their assigned job sites and home again at the end of each day. The plaintiff argues that though the defendant demanded employees adhere to strict policies concerning the vehicles’ operation, they were not paid proper wages for their travel time. From the complaint:

“Plaintiff and the putative Class members and aggrieved employees were not paid for any of the time spent mandatorily commuting in company-owned cars, during which time they were suffered or permitted to work and remained under Defendant’s strict control. Thus, Plaintiff and the putative Class and aggrieved employees were not paid minimum or overtime wages for this time.”

The plaintiff estimates that he is owed unpaid wages for approximately 10 hours of work per week and further argues that the defendant unlawfully subtracted meal and rest periods from his hours worked even when he was unable to take a break. As a result, the suit alleges, his wage statements did not accurately reflect the time he spent working.

Furthermore, the case claims employees were not reimbursed for business expenses, including “costs associated with mandatory maintenance and/or cleanliness services on company-owned vehicles and related to the provision of potable drinking water.”

The suit was recently removed from the Superior Court of California to the District Court for the Central District of California.