Lawsuit Claims Hershey Company Workers Were Not Paid Proper Overtime

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The Hershey Company faces a proposed class and collective action that alleges it has failed to pay hourly employees proper overtime wages for time spent washing their hands and putting on and taking off protective gear.

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The 14-page lawsuit, filed by a former employee, says that workers at the Hershey Company’s manufacturing facilities must spend time before and after each shift “donning and doffing” their sanitary clothing and protective equipment and otherwise preparing to handle food products, all which must be done off the clock at the defendant’s facility.

According to the suit, employees spend roughly 10 to 15 minutes a day performing these tasks, resulting in up to an hour and 25 minutes or more of unpaid overtime per week for workers who are already scheduled for 40 hours.

The time spent putting on and taking off sanitary gear and washing hands is considered “compensable work time” under federal and state law because it is vital to work involving food production, the case says. In order to comply with U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations for workers employed in the manufacture or handling of food, Hershey employees must wear sanitary uniforms, hair nets, bump caps, steel-toed shoes, safety glasses, and other protective gear, the complaint relays.

The filing alleges that because sanitary practices like the use of protective equipment and washing hands are required by the FDA, Hershey has violated labor law by failing to properly compensate employees for the time spent performing these duties, which are “integral and indispensable” to their work.

The lawsuit looks to represent all current and former employees of the Hershey Company who were involved in the manufacturing, packaging, or handling of food products, who were required to don and doff sanitary clothing and other protective equipment, and who worked over 40 hours in a workweek at any time since February 14, 2020.

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