Suit Filed Against American Health Associates Over FLSA Violations

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Filed in South Carolina, a class action lawsuit against American Health Associates, Inc. (AHA) alleges the clinical laboratory services company engaged in a pattern of failing to pay employees the minimum wage and overtime, as well as making unlawful pay deductions. The suit seeks to represent individuals employed as mobile phlebotomists—individuals trained to draw blood for testing, transfusions, donations or research from patients at nursing homes and assisted living facilities—who were paid using an unlawful “hybrid compensation model,” which is a combination of piece-meal and flat rates of pay. The lawsuit also says the employees were not paid for all hours worked, which, plaintiffs say, includes time spent traveling between sample pick-up and drop-off locations.

In addition to alleging wage violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the suit claims the defendant violated the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) after the plaintiff requested time off for a scheduled surgery. The plaintiff argues that she was fired by American Health Associates due to her attempts to exercise her FMLA rights and that her former employer’s reason for the termination—that she reportedly failed to respond to an urgent call—was merely a pretext. According to the complaint, interference with an individual’s attempt to exercise his or her FMLA rights is unlawful.