Bimbo Bakeries Delivery Driver Sues Over Allegedly Reduced Wages for Unsold Products

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A Bimbo Bakeries delivery driver claims in a proposed collective action that the bakery product manufacturer has unlawfully reduced or withheld workers’ wages by unfairly charging them for unsold products.

The 14-page lawsuit alleges Bimbo has violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) by failing to pay workers proper minimum and overtime wages. According to the case, the defendants’ conduct has caused the plaintiff and other drivers to lose “significant income.”

Bimbo’s withholding of wages for returned products and failure to pay proper wages is “so clear as to appear intentional,” the suit argues.

The plaintiff says he works for Bimbo as a driver tasked with delivering the defendant’s products to retail stores in exchange for a base pay rate of $315.00 per week, regardless of how many hours he works. On top of his base pay, the plaintiff also receives a bonus or incentive pay based on how many products are sold by the stores to which he delivers, according to the complaint. The lawsuit says the formula used by Bimbo to calculate the plaintiff’s bonus or incentive pay is based on the wholesale price of the products, which are sold by stores at a higher retail amount.

If any products fail to sell and must be returned to Bimbo, the plaintiff’s account is charged for these items, the suit relays. The amount charged, however, is based not on the wholesale price from which his bonus is calculated but on the higher retail price for which the items are sold in stores, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit claims that Bimbo makes more on unsold products charged to the plaintiff than it does on products sold by retailers because the returned items can be sold to third parties such as hog farms for an additional profit. Per the suit, the plaintiff and other delivery drivers receive no compensation for returned products that are resold by Bimbo.

The plaintiff alleges that although he and other drivers expressed their concerns with Bimbo’s formulas for calculating bonuses/incentive pay and charges for unsold products, their concerns were dismissed “with no consideration or investigation.”

The lawsuit further alleges that the plaintiff’s base pay rate falls below the federal minimum wage. Moreover, the plaintiff claims to have never received time-and-a-half overtime pay for the hours he works in excess of 40 each week.

The plaintiff looks to represent Bimbo delivery drivers who had their wages improperly withheld or reduced for returned products, who were not paid minimum wages, and who were not paid overtime.

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