In a case of first impression in the circuit, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has established a four-part test to determine whether a company is a joint employer under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
The question arose in a class action suit filed by assistant managers at Enterprise Rent-A-Car branches across the country who alleged that Enterprise failed to pay overtime wages in violation of the FLSA. The district court ruled that Enterprise Holdings, the owner of the rental car business, didn’t qualify as a joint employer and granted its motion for summary judgment. A three-judge panel on the appeals court affirmed the district court’s holding and, in defining its own test, “amplified” the terms that the district court had used to make its determination.
