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 The court decided by a 9-0 vote that employees of Integrity
Staffing Solutions facilities in Nevada, where Amazon merchandise is
processed and shipped, cannot claim compensation for time spent
undergoing screening - up to half an hour a day, according to the
workers - aimed at protecting against theft.
The ruling is likely to benefit other companies facing similar
lawsuits including Amazon, CVS Health Corp and Apple Inc, according
to Integrity's lawyers. The cases against Amazon, Integrity and
other staffing companies affect up to 400,000 workers, with
plaintiffs claiming hundreds of millions of dollars in damages,
according to court filings.
Amazon spokeswoman Kelly Cheeseman said the allegations in the
Integrity case of a lengthy security screening process were "simply
not true." She added that Amazon's screening process is designed to
take 90 seconds per employee at its facilities.
 Mark Thierman, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said the ruling
leaves thousands of workers "short-changed a half hour per day."
Many workers will still be able to pursue similar claims under state
law, Thierman added.
Justice Clarence Thomas wrote on behalf of the court that the
screening process is not a "principal activity" of the workers' jobs
under a law called the Fair Labor Standards Act and therefore is not
subject to compensation.
For workers to be paid, the activity in question must be “an
intrinsic element” of the job and “one with which the employee
cannot dispense if he is to perform his principal activities,”
Thomas wrote.
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The high court reversed an April 2013 ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals, which had found that the screenings were an
integral part of the warehousing job done for the benefit of the
employer and should be compensated.
Employees had sued Integrity Staffing Solutions for back wages and
overtime pay, saying they should have been compensated for time
spent in security screenings.
Amazon, the world's largest online retailer, is not directly
involved in the case. A business group called the Retail Litigation
Center, in a brief supporting the warehousing company, said the
industry in general loses $16 billion annually in thefts.
The case is Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc v. Jesse Busk and
Laurie Castro, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 13-433.
(Additional reporting by Deepa Seetharaman; Editing by Will Dunham)
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