A collective/class action spanning New York, New Jersey and Connecticut has been filed in New York against cable TV giant, Cablevision Systems Corporation. The action is brought on behalf of all current and former Cablevision customer services representatives who, since June 2001, were not paid proper statutory overtime for all hours worked beyond 40 per week and who, since June 1998, were not paid full wages for all hours worked. The action is brought under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and New York state labor laws and seeks back pay, statutory and liquidated damages as well as declaratory and injunctive relief. As a collective action under federal law, all potential claimants are required to "opt-in" to the action in order to be considered part of the class. The employees have requested that the court issue notice to all potential class members. Those who join the case under the state law claims are not required to "opt-in"

According to employees, Cablevision has engaged in a willful and intentional course of action to defraud them of proper overtime compensation as well as proper minimum wage compensation. The employees claim that Cablevision requires them to work in excess of 40 hours per week, but generally considers these overtime hours as time spent off of the clock. The employees claim that they are not compensated at all for hours spent setting up their work stations and then shutting them down after their shift has ended. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, all hourly "non-exempt" employees are entitled to a minimum of time and a half for all hours worked in excess of 40 per week. "Non-exempt" employees are generally those that work on an hourly basis and do not have managerial or executive responsibility. The employees, the majority of which were employed as hourly customer service representatives, claim that they are "non-exempt" and therefore entitled to receive overtime compensation for all hours worked beyond 40 per week. They also claim that they are entitled to receive compensation for all hours worked, whether on the clock or off the clock. They contend that the time spent off of the clock is part and parcel to their duties spent on the clock and they should be compensated for all of these hours. The employees also claim that because Cablevision's refusal to pay overtime and proper minimum wage was willful and intentional, they are entitled to an equal amount of liquidated damages.