Vilella v. Pup Culture LLC

Court Grants FLSA Plaintiff's Motion for Conditional Class Certification

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OPINION AND ORDER Plaintiff Ashley Vilella (“Vilella” or “Plaintiff”) brings this action on behalf of herself and similarly situated persons, alleging, inter alia, violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (“FLSA”), 29 U.S.C. §§201 et seq., and New York Labor Law (“NYLL”), §§191 et seq., and asserting, as relevant here, claims for unpaid overtime wages, improper time rounding, and a policy of time-shaving. Dkt. No. 48

66-86. Vilella moves for conditional certification of this action as collective action under FLSA, 29 U.S.C. §216(b). Dkt. No. 27. She seeks: (1) conditional certification of the FLSA claim for current and former non-exempt employees within the six-year period prior to the filing of the Complaint; (2) approval and distribution of notice of the action to all covered employees; (3) approval for opt-in plaintiffs to send consent forms to Plaintiff’s counsel; (4) production of certain information by the employer about covered employees; (5) the posting of notice in Defendants’ business; and (6) equitable tolling of the statute of limitations period. Dkt. No. 27-1 at 2-3. For the following reasons, the motion for conditional class certification is granted as modified by this opinion. BACKGROUND The following facts are drawn from the allegations of Plaintiff’s first amended complaint and are taken as true for purposes of this motion. The Court summarizes only those allegations most pertinent to the instant motion. Defendant Pupculture LLC d/b/a Pup Culture (“Pupculture”) is a New York corporation and parent company of five wholly-owned subsidiary stores (the “Operating Companies”) located in New York City that operate day care services for dogs under the Pupculture name. Dkt. No. 48 8. The Operating Companies are located in midtown and downtown Manhattan and in Brooklyn, and provide services for dogs including walking, grooming, daycare, and boarding. Id.

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