Judge Certifies Nationwide Collective Action on Behalf of Natural Grocers’ Assistant Store Managers
Assistant Store Managers at Natural Grocers today received conditional certification of a nationwide collective action against Natural Grocers in order to recover their unpaid overtime. The judge overseeing the case found there was sufficient evidence to demonstrate that Assistant Store Managers were similarly situated and could proceed with sending notice of the lawsuit to approximately 440 other Assistant Store Managers to permit them to join the case. The Assistant Store Managers allege that Natural Grocers violated federal and Colorado law by misclassifying them as exempt from overtime compensation. Testimony from six former managers demonstrated that they were required to work more than 40 hours a week and spent up to 90% of their time on non-exempt tasks such as helping customers, moving freight, stocking shelves, building displays, counting inventory, and cleaning the store. Natural Grocers owns and operates more than 150 stores across more than a dozen states. Assistant Store Managers who worked for Natural Grocers between January 31, 2017 and November 6, 2020 will soon receive notice of the lawsuit. A copy of the judge’s decision can be found here. Media coverage of the decision can be found here and here.
If you worked as an Assistant Store Manager for Natural Grocers between January 31, 2017 and November 6, 2020 and would like more information about the case, please call Conway Legal at (215) 278-4782.