Office supply retail store chain Staples, Inc. (SPLS), Friday said it has reached a $42 million global settlement in several retail wage and hour class action lawsuits related to the alleged mis-classification of its assistant store managers concerning overtime pay.
As per the deal, which is subject to court approval, Staples will pay $42 million to resolve the allegations and avoid further distraction from litigation that has been ongoing for the past three years.
The global settlement involves no admission of wrongdoing in connection with the allegations, which claimed that assistant store managers were misclassified as exempt from overtime pay.
Staples has also agreed to drop its appeal of a verdict against it last year in New Jersey. The amounts associated with the previous verdict will be included in the settlement amount, as will interest and class counsel's attorney fees.
The settlement amount resolves claims for damages dating back as far as 2002 in some cases and covers more than 5,500 current and former associates.
Staples, in 2007, reached a similar settlement in a wage and hour class action lawsuit concerning the alleged misclassification of its California-based assistant store managers. The settlement of $38 million resolved the allegations, which Staples said allowed it to avoid further expense and distraction from litigation of eight years.
SPLS is currently trading at $23.93, up $0.22 or 0.93%, on a volume of 2.31 million shares.
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