The state of Washington has agreed to pay $7.2 million to settle a lawsuit
alleging the state failed to pay prison guards and other state workers for the
time they spent performing tasks before and after their shifts, the Associated
press reports.
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117 negotiated the settlement during mediation, the news service
notes. The agreement requires the state legislature's approval.
In settling the class-action lawsuit, the state admitted no wrongdoing, according
to the news service.
The lawsuit alleged that workers were required to perform equipment checks,
inventory, and other tasks during transitions from one shift to the next. The
guards said they were unpaid for those periods, which typically lasted six to
12 minutes.
"It worked out pretty well when all three parties got together,"
says Lewis Ellsworth, an attorney representing 1,900 affected workers.
The settlement covers a four-year period.
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