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• Minor league transactions license#

Minor league transactions license#

For example, although the plaintiffs are “professional” athletes, they do not qualify for the professional employee exemption under either state or federal law for several reasons: many do not earn the minimum weekly salary required to qualify for the exemption, nor do they perform intellectual work requiring advanced studies or a license from the state. As a result, neither the Bridewell courts nor the DOL considered exemptions under the FLSA or state law that may arguably apply to ball players or the contention - which may be MLB’s best defense - that the ballplayers are not employees at all.Īs an initial matter, MLB and its codefendants (who have not yet responded to the complaint) are unlikely to persuade the court that the Minor Leaguers are exempt employees under either the FLSA or state laws. However, the lessons of the Bridewell cases and the DOL investigations have limited applicability in the Minor Leaguers’ case, since both involved low-level employees such as maintenance and clubhouse workers rather than athletes. The DOL announced that they are now working with MLB “to ensure that all teams are aware of and adhere to the requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act.”

In response to the DOL’s findings, the Giants paid employees $545,000 in back wages and damages. (The Minor Leaguers’ complaint somewhat overstates the breadth of the holding of these, asserting that MLB has “been on notice that they are not exempt from federal and minimum wage and overtime requirements since at least 19, when the Sixth Circuit issued a pair of decisions making clear that the industry is not exempt.”) More recently, in 2013, the Wage and Hour Division of the US Department of Labor (“DOL”) conducted investigations into the Miami Marlins’ and the San Francisco Giants’ employment policies and practices. The Cincinnati Reds, 68 F.3d 136, 139 (6th Cir. As noted in the Minor Leaguers’ complaint, the Sixth Circuit rejected the argument that an MLB team is a “seasonal amusement or recreational establishment” exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). Further, minor leaguers are not paid for their required attendance at spring and winter training, nor are they paid overtime.ĭespite the fact that professional baseball has long enjoyed an exemption from the antitrust laws, teams have not succeeded in asserting exemptions from federal and state wage and hour laws. The complaint alleges “most minor leaguers earn between around $3000 and $7500 for the entire year despite routinely working over 50 hours per week (and sometimes 70 hours per week) during the roughly five-month championship season.” In addition, the plaintiffs assert that MLB currently recommends salaries of just $1,100 per month for Rookie and Short-Season A $1,250 per month for Single A, $1,500 per month for Double A and $2,150 for Triple A players. On February 7, 2014, three minor league baseball players filed a class action complaint against the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball d/b/a Major League Baseball (“MLB”), Bud Selig, the Kansas City Royals, the Miami Marlins and San Francisco Baseball Associates LLC for violations of federal and state wage and hour laws in United States District Court for the Northern District of California. The National Football League is not the only professional sports league accused of wage and hour violations. Like Lacy T., Brennemen alleges that she and members of the class she seeks to represent were required to attend numerous functions (such as practices and promotional events) for which they were not compensated. Brennemen claims that in 2013, she “worked well in excess of 300 hours for ”, and she was paid only $855 at the end of the season - averaging a pay rate of less than $2.85 an hour.

Similarly, on February 11, 2014, less than three weeks after the Raiderettes complaint was filed, former Cincinnati Bengals cheerleader Alexa Brennemen filed a class action complaint in the Southern District of Ohio. According to the complaint, the team acknowledges that these fines may result in a Raiderette receiving no compensation whatsoever for the season. Moreover, the cheerleaders’ final compensation is subject to multiple deductions - escalating fines imposed for such infractions as tardiness or failing to wear all parts of the official uniform, ranging from $10 to $380. asserts that the cheerleaders are paid a flat fee of $125 per game to be received upon completion of the season, regardless of how many hours worked and that they are required to attend two or more weekly rehearsals without pay and appear at numerous unpaid charity events.

In January 2014, an Oakland Raiders cheerleader filed a putative class action in Alameda Superior Court against the Raiders for numerous alleged state law violations. High-profile wage and hour claims appear to be on the rise in professional sports.