A group of firefighters have sued the village of Winthrop Harbor, claiming the Lake County community underpaid them for working an overnight shift each week.
On Aug. 13, attorney Richard J. Miller, of The Miller Law Firm, of Schaumburg, filed a class action lawsuit in Chicago federal court against Winthrop Harbor on behalf of the village’s firefighters.
Winthrop Harbor is located on the shores of Lake Michigan in northern Lake County, on the Wisconsin-Illinois state line.
Named plaintiffs in the action include Eric Zack, Joshua Trice, Allison Hancock and Lloyd R. Wollert.
According to the complaint, the firefighters are paid hourly and are all assigned to work one of six shifts over a 7-day work week.
Five firefighters are also assigned each week to work a night shift from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. “on every 6th day of the work period.”
However, according to the complaint, the firefighters assigned to that overnight shift “are not paid their hourly wage,” but rather are paid only a $50 stipend.
Further, the complaint accuses Winthrop Harbor of shorting firefighters overtime pay “for hours worked in excess of 53 in individual work periods when required to work from 8:00 to 5:00 a.m. on every 6th day of the work period.”
The complaint accuses the village of violating both the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and the Illinois Minimum Wage Law.
The complaint asks the court to award the plaintiffs unpaid wages, plus 2% interest per month of alleged underpayments.