Hodgson v. Discount Auto Parts Store, Inc.

333 F. Supp. 65, 20 Wage & Hour Cas. (BNA) 243, 1971 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11417
District Court, N.D. Florida·Decided September 30, 1971·No. Civ. A. No. P-2283·Published

Opinion

FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

ARNOW, Chief Judge.

This cause came on for trial before the Court without a jury on September 28 and 29, 1971. The Court having heard and considered the testimony, stipulations, exhibits and all the admissible evidence, the arguments of counsel and being fully advised now makes the following findings of fact and conclusions of law:

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. In this action the Secretary of Labor seeks an injunction to preclude further violations of the minimum wage, overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended (29 U.S.C. 201, et seq.), hereinafter referred to as the Act, including the restraint of withholding of minimum wages and overtime compensation due certain of defendants’ employees.

2. Defendant, Discount Auto Parts Stores, Inc., is a corporation having a place of business and doing business at 604 North Pace Boulevard, Pensacola, Escambia County, Florida, where it is, and at all times pertinent hereto was, engaged in the distribution and sale of automotive parts and accessories.

3. Defendant, Martin Sharron, resides in Pensacola, Escambia County, Florida, and at all times pertinent hereto is and has been general manager of Discount Auto Parts Stores, Inc., at its aforesaid Pensacola establishment, and in such capacity has actively managed, supervised and directed the business affairs of said corporation in relation to its employees.

4. Throughout the period since September 7, 1968, defendants’ employees all have regularly received goods and supplies at the Pensacola, Florida, place of business arriving from points outside of Florida, and they have regularly packaged and shipped returned goods to suppliers outside of Florida.

[67]*675. Defendants did not maintain a record of the hours worked by their employees during the period from September 14, 1968, through May 29, 1970.

6. Throughout the period prior to May 29, 1970, defendants’ aforesaid establishment in Pensacola, Florida had an annual dollar volume of sales which was less then $250,000. Defendant Sharron testified that he estimated that five to ten percent of the sales of the establishment were exempt from the Florida retail sales tax and that over half of the sales were made within the State of Florida. He testified that in addition to these, there were certain other transactions included in the cash register receipts of the establishment which were payments by other out-of-state auto parts dealers for auto parts which the corporate defendant had purchased from supliera in a volume in excess of its individual needs in order to obtain more favorable prices for volume purchases. Amounts of such goods in excess of the requirements of defendants’ business were then picked up by the other out-of-state auto parts dealers at defendants’ establishment who reimbursed the corporate defendant for them at cost. Defendants argued that these transactions should not be considered as sales. However, Mr. Sharron testified that the corporate defendant alone contracted with the suppliers for such goods and was billed for them by the suppliers. Mr. Sharron stated that defendants had no records reflecting the volume of such transactions and that he could not estimate the volume thereof.

7. Defendants paid their employees straight salaries for all hours worked and made no attempt to pay them time and one-half for hours worked in excess of forty per week.

8. Defendants’ employee Elzie Sims had the primary duty of management, being the assistant general manager of defendants’ auto parts establishment. He customarily and regularly directed the work of two or more other employees, had authority to hire and fire, and spent the majority of his time in management of the enterprise, although he also spent some of his time in making sales and performing other work of the same nature as that performed by the employees under his supervision.

9. The parties have stipulated that the employees listed below and in Findings of Fact Nos. 10 through 11 were employed by the corporate defendant during the periods and at the weekly salaries set opposite their names. The hours worked of the employees listed below this Finding of Fact are based on the testimony of defendant Sharron:

Name Period (Workweeks ending) Average Minimum Weekly Wage Hours Salary Due Overtime Premium Due
John W. Burgett
4/7-5/1/70 & 49 100.00 None
5/22-5/29/70
(6 weeks)
5/8-5/15/70
(2 weeks) 49 83.32 None 70.52
Median date: 5/1/70 Total $ 70.52
Elzie A. Sims 1/24-3/28/69 49 120.00 None
(10 weeks)
4/4/69-2/13/70 49 145.00 723.04
(46 weeks) Total $ 723.04
Median date: 8/1/69
James Johnson, Jr.
11/21/69 49 75.00 3.40 7.20
Median date 11/21/69 Total 10.60
William David Gregg
10/18/68-
1/3/69 (12 wks) 49 80.00 None 88.32
Median date 11/22/68 Total 88.32
George L Simpson
5/15/70 49 85.00 None 7.82
Median date 5/15/70 Total 7.82
[68]*68Name Period (Workweeks ending) Average Weekly Hours Salary Minimum Wage Due Overtime Premium Due
Patrick Jefferson Pate III
3/27/70-
4/3/70 49 75.00 6.80 14,40
Median date 3/27/70 Total 21.20
Ronnie Sims
9/14/68-
10/3/68 (3 Wks) 49 100.00 None 266.80
10/12/68 49 83.34
10/17/68 49 100.00
11/8/68-
1/3/69 (9 Wks) 49 100.00
1/30-2/6/70 (2 Wks) 49 70.00
2/13-3/13/70 (5 Wks) 49 100.00
3/20/70 49 115.00
3/27/70 49 100.00
4/3/70 49 115.00
4/10-5/29/70 49 125.00
Median date 6/12/69 Total $ 266.80

10. The hours worked by the following named employees of defendants are based on the testimony of said employees as found by the Court to be credible:

Name Period (Workweeks ending) Average Weekly Hours Salary Minimum Wages Due Overtime Premium Due
Regina Miller 4/18/69-6/18/69 Alternating weeks of 47 and 48 hours except last week of 40 hours $60.00 (except last week $50) $158.80 54.40
Median date 5/18/69 Total $ 213.20
Lynn Bryan Paul 3/27/69-4/17/69 18, 54, 55 & 54 $23.34 1st week $70.00 thereafter 56.26 34.40

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Hodgson v. Discount Auto Parts Store, Inc., 333 F. Supp. 65, 20 Wage & Hour Cas. (BNA) 243, 1971 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11417 (N.D. Fla. 1971).

333 F. Supp. 65 (Hodgson v. Discount Auto Parts Store, Inc.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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