Minor League Baseball Players Allege Wage and Hour Violations

A collective action brought by Minor League Baseball (“MILB”) players is currently pending seeking back wages and damages for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).   The FLSA provides certain guarantees, such as that workers be paid at least federal minimum wage, and that non-exempt workers earn overtime pay at a rate of one and one-half times time standard hourly rate for all time worked over 40 hours in any one work week.

According to the lawsuit, the Commissioner of Baseball and several Major League Baseball (MLB) franchises violated wage and hour protections for minimum wage and overtime pay.   Many players earn very little, a reported $3000-$7500 over the course of a 5-month season.  The season may involve playing up to 150 games, working well over forty hours a week, and significant travel.  The players assert that these salaries fall well below minimum wage and, additionally, that they were denied all of the overtime they were entitled to.  They are hoping that by bringing a collective action, enough pressure will be placed on baseball management to work quickly to resolve their grievances, including improving pay for MILB players.

As with any company or organization, it is important to treat employees fairly, this includes compensating them as they deserve, and not exploiting them for profit.  For more information or if you believe that you have not received all the overtime pay or wages that you are justly entitled to, please contact our dedicated Atlanta wage and hour lawyers for an immediate case evaluation.