What Happened?
Michael Kenney worked as an armed security guard for Helix TCS, a security outfit in Colorado that provides services to cannabis businesses. Helix classified Kenney and his fellow security guards as exempt from overtime laws. Even though he sometimes worked over 40 hours per week, he only received a salary and did not receive overtime pay.
Kennedy filed a collective action under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the federal wage and hour statute, alleging that Helix misclassified him and his coworkers as exempt. Helix asked the court to dismiss the case, claiming that their workers should not be protected by the FLSA. Its argument? That their work – and Colorado’s entire recreational cannabis industry – violated the federal Controlled Substances Act. After all, it argued, any product containing THC is still categorized as an illegal Schedule 1 drug. Therefore, its workers shouldn’t get the benefit of another federal law.
Court: Can’t Have Your Cake And Eat It, Too
The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected this argument and ruled that Kenney could proceed with his lawsuit. “Employers are not excused from complying with federal laws just because their business practices are federally prohibited,” it said. The court ruled that cannabis employers could not both thrive in the industry and then claim that the illegal nature of their business under federal law shields them from wage and hour duties.
It noted that the FLSA was intended to be broad and remedial in nature, covering as many workers as possible. In the court’s eyes, this included workers in the cannabis industry like Kenney. After all, Congress had the power to exclude cannabis workers from the law if it wanted, and the fact that it hadn’t done so was telling.
What This Ruling Means For Your Business
The decision only directly impacts cannabis employers in the 10th Circuit: those in Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah, and Wyoming. But the decision cited a 2017 case from Oregon, Greenwood v. Green Leaf Lab LLC, where the court said that “just because an employer is violating one federal law does not give it license to violate another.” You can assume the Helix decision will only bolster the law in Oregon. And it would not be surprising if courts across the country didn’t look to these cases from Oregon and Colorado and apply them the next time a similar dispute arises elsewhere.
If you are in California, Washington, or any of the 11 states (plus D.C.) that permit recreational sales, or in any of the 33 states allowing medicinal use, take notice. Helix’s novel defense didn’t work, so don’t count on it helping you if you find yourself facing a FLSA lawsuit. The FLSA is considered a broad remedial statute and the employer bears the burden of proving the exemption.
Instead, focus your energies on avoiding a claim in the first place. Assume that your business is subject to federal wage law just like every other employer and act accordingly. Moreover, your state may have a robust local wage and hour law that wouldn’t even be subject to this defense anyway.
What You Should Do
It is more important than ever for your cannabis business to comply with wage and hour laws. Once plaintiffs’ attorneys across the country learn about the Helix decision, they will be more willing to bring claims against your company. They know you now have one fewer weapon in your arsenal. Work with your employment lawyer to make sure you’re doing all you can ahead of time to stay on the right side of the law. Some things you can do on your own:
- Ensure your overtime-exempt workers meet one of the FLSA duties tests and the new salary test.
- Confirm your independent contractors aren’t misclassified.
- Get up to speed on overtime laws regarding piece-rate work and agricultural exemptions.
- Make sure you are paying correctly for training hours, on-call time, waiting time, etc.
- Enforce meal and break time rules.