Kellogg Pays Employees $550,000

Kellogg Co. agreed to pay $550,000 to settle employee wage claims for not paying them for time they spent walking from the changing room where they put on their uniform to where the time clocks were located where they had clock in or out.

A Kellogg factory worker sued the company in May 2008, alleging that her employer violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by failing to pay her and other co-workers for the time they spent donning and doffing their uniform (pants, logo shirts, slip-resistant shoes, and hairnets). Kellogg argued that though the time employees spent donning and doffing their uniforms and time spent walking was de minimis (too minimal to be significant), and as a result, Kellogg should not be required to pay for it. The Judge disagreed with Kellogg’s.