Outten & Golden represents two former HSBC call center workers from HSBC’s call center facilities in Buffalo, NY and Depew, NY in a lawsuit alleging that HSBC denied them and their coworkers overtime pay required by federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and New York state wage and hour laws. Our clients, James Stefaniak and Keith Panaccione, in their Class Action Complaint, allege that they were required to perform work outside their scheduled shifts, for HSBC’s benefit, without compensation, and without the overtime premium that the wage and hour laws require employers to pay for hours worked in excess of 40 hours in a workweek.
Based on Outten & Golden’s investigations into similar overtime practices at other call centers, it appears that HSBC is part of a larger industry trend — requiring low-paid call center workers to work outside of their scheduled shifts without compensation or overtime pay. Outten & Golden’s clients have filed class action lawsuits against several other companies that run call centers, including TeleTech, JP Morgan Chase, GEICO, and ClientLogic for similar practices that would violate the Fair Labor Standards Act and state wage and hour laws. Outten & Golden is currently investigating similar practices at other call centers in the Buffalo, NY area and nationwide, including an Adelphia call center in the Buffalo, NY area.
The case, James Stefaniak and Keith Panaccione v. HSBC Bank USA Inc., No. 05 CV 6528 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, seeks to force HSBC to pay thousands of employees the wages that they earned. The workers are seeking class action status.
HSBC runs call centers in Buffalo, N.Y.; Depew, N.Y.; Chesapeake, Va.; Wood Dale, Ill.; Las Vegas, Nev.; and other locations.
Please contact Justin M. Swartz or Tammy Marzigliano for more information.
(*Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.)
