Samaniego v. HKS Builders & Consultants Inc.

Background

The court had entered default judgment for Plaintiffs Elsin Amay Samaniego and Henry Amay Samaniego on October 23, 2020. It directed them to submit the amounts they sought for damages, attorneys’ fees, and costs. The defendants did not contest either the default judgment or the proposed amounts. Although the case was initially brought as a collective action, the order states that damages were sought only for the two named plaintiffs.

Damages

The court held that no additional damages hearing was necessary and relied on the plaintiffs’ submissions. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the New York Labor Law (NYLL), the court found that each plaintiff had worked 238.15 overtime hours but had been paid at the regular rate instead of the required one-and-one-half rate. The court awarded each plaintiff $8,930.63 in back wages. It did not award duplicative back wages under both statutes.

Because the defendants made no showing that they had acted in good faith, the court awarded each plaintiff liquidated damages equal to 100% of the back wages: $8,930.63. The court also found that the plaintiffs had received neither the required wage notices nor accurate wage statements. It awarded each plaintiff the statutory maximum of $5,000 for wage-notice violations and $5,000 for wage-statement violations.

The court awarded prejudgment interest on the back wages, but not on the liquidated damages or wage-notice and wage-statement penalties. The interest rate was 9% per year, beginning November 15, 2018, which the court selected as the midpoint of each plaintiff’s employment.

Attorneys’ Fees and Costs

The court reviewed Plaintiffs’ counsel’s records and accepted 24.6 hours of work as reasonable. It reduced the requested hourly rates for two attorneys to $400 and $225, respectively, and accepted $75 per hour for paralegal work. The court awarded $5,912.50 in attorneys’ fees and accepted $400 in costs for the filing fee.

Ruling and Disposition

Judge Katherine Polk Failla awarded each plaintiff $27,861.26, consisting of $8,930.63 in back wages, $8,930.63 in liquidated damages, $5,000 for wage-notice violations, and $5,000 for wage-statement violations. The combined award for the two plaintiffs was $55,722.52, not including interest. The court also awarded $5,912.50 in attorneys’ fees and $400 in costs, provided for post-judgment interest, and stated that the judgment would automatically increase by 15% if qualifying amounts remained unpaid after the specified 90-day period. The Clerk was directed to terminate pending motions, adjourn remaining dates, and close the case.