The US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, in an opinion overturning three Oregon and Washington district court decisions, has confirmed that F&I employees are exempt from overtime under section 7(i) of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Ninth Circuit opinion involved three cases in which the main question was whether F&I managers, compensated almost entirely through commission, were exempt from the FLSA’s overtime pay requirements.
NADA filed friend-of-the-court (amicus curiae) briefs on behalf of the dealers involved and also provided financial support through its Legal Defense Fund. In an almost unprecedented move, according to NADA, the US Department of Labor (DOL) also filed amicus briefs on the dealers’ behalf.
NADA chairman Jack Kain said the decision is a major and complete victory for dealerships and for DOL, too. If the Ninth Circuit had not overturned the lower courts’ interpretations, the potential liabilities for dealers would have run into the hundreds of millions of dollars. This is an excellent example of terrific work by NADA and of NADA Legal Defense Fund money well spent, said Kain.
For details regarding the decision, e-mail regulatoryaffairs@nada.org or call (703) 821-7040.
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