LOS ANGELES (AP) - Catering workers who service airlines at Los Angeles International Airport has filed a lawsuit against Sky Chefs alleging they are owed hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid overtime.
The suit was filed Wednesday on behalf Sky Chefs workers who claim they were shortchanged from Jan. 1 to the present, the San Gabriel Valley Tribune reported. The group is seeking class-action certification.
Sky Chefs said Wednesday that it does not comment on pending litigation.
The employees claim Sky Chefs calculates their overtime pay based on a wage below the legally-required minimum for workers serving LAX.
The court filing describes the company’s actions as “systematic, widespread and flagrant violations of these laws.”
One plaintiff said the company underpaid him $3.74 per hour for overtime, the newspaper reported.
Attorney Randy Renick, who is representing the workers, said the number of affected Sky Chefs employees could range from 500 to all 900 who work at facilities adjacent to the airport.
The lawsuit seeks damages equal to the underpaid overtime hours with applicable interest, as well as attorney’s fees and costs. Renick said it would likely amount to “at least a few million dollars.”
The lawsuit comes following a protest by Sky Chefs workers last month at LAX calling for a living wage and affordable health care.
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