COUNTRYWIDE SETTLEMENT FIRM TO PAY $30 MILLION TO WORKERS.Byline: Gregory J. Wilcox Staff Writer CALABASAS - Countrywide coun·try·wide adv. & adj. Throughout a whole country; nationwide: launched a fundraising campaign countrywide; a countrywide search. Adj. 1. Home Loans Inc. will pay $30 million to settle a class action lawsuit class action lawsuit A lawsuit in which one party or a limited number of parties sue on behalf of a larger group to which the parties belong. For example, investors may bring a class action lawsuit against a brokerage firm that has actively promoted a tax over account executives' pay and work rules, the company said Tuesday. The suit concerns overtime, meal breaks and other issues involving about 400 employees who worked at the Rosemead call center from Feb. 14, 1998, to Dec. 30, 2004. They will each on average receive $50,000 in unpaid overtime, reimbursement Reimbursement Payment made to someone for out-of-pocket expenses has incurred. of wage deductions, compensation for on-duty meal periods, attorneys' fees and related items. Calabasas-based Countrywide had classified the call center account executives as exempt employees, which means they did not get overtime and were not covered not covered Health care adjective Referring to a procedure, test or other health service to which a policy holder or insurance beneficiary is not entitled under the terms of the policy or payment system–eg, Medicare. Cf Covered. by workplace rules for other employees. ``Countrywide's consistent policy has been to classify employees as required by law,'' company spokeswoman Susan Martin said in a statement. She also noted that the company believes its original classification was lawful but that it settled to ``avoid the expense and uncertainty of litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. .'' Attorney Linda M. Dardarian, a partner at the Oakland law firm Goldstein, Demchak, Baller, Borgen and Dardarian, which filed the suit, said that as part of the settlement Countrywide agreed to reclassify Verb 1. reclassify - classify anew, change the previous classification; "The zoologists had to reclassify the mollusks after they found new species" class, classify, sort out, assort, sort, separate - arrange or order by classes or categories; "How would you account executives as nonexempt employees starting Jan. 1. ``Countrywide has done the right thing by agreeing to provide significant back pay relief to this group of California call center employees,'' she said. The amount of back pay each employee receives depends on factors like pay level and time on the job. The account executives involved in the suit responded to telephone inquiries by consumers about home loan products and helped them select and apply for various products. The settlement has received preliminary approval from Judge Victor H. Person of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Superior Court. It will go into effect if the court grants final approval after a further hearing. Gregory J. Wilcox, (818) 713-3743 greg.wilcox(at)dailynews.com |
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