Court Opinion

ID: 9684753
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 14:10:40.827831+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:17:59.349763
License: Public Domain

BURKE, Chief Justice
(concurring specially) .
1 cannot agree with the construction given to Section 34-06-16, N.D.C.C. in the opinion written by Judge TEIGEN. In my opinion this section allows attorney fees in any suit for minimum wages by a person entitled thereto where the judgment entered in the case, upon sufficient evidence, determines that the wage claimant had not in fact been paid the minimum wage, notwithstanding the fact that the employer may have agreed to pay the claimant a wage in excess of the minimum wage. Where the agreement was for more than the minimum wage it would be incumbent upon the claimant to elect to sue for the minimum wage or to sue on her contract. If she elected to sue for the minimum wage, her recovery would be limited to the amount of the minimum wage and reasonable attorney fees. If she elected to sue on the contract, she could recover the amount due under the contract but not attorney fees.
Claimant worked for her employer for approximately 14 weeks. She was paid semimonthly. During the first two pay periods her agreed wage was 75‡ an hour. During the balance of the time it was 80‡ an hour. The minimum wage was 61‡ an hour. When claimant quit work, a dispute arose between her and her employer. The employer contended that through an error, she had failed to deduct from the amount paid to claimant the value of the meals eaten by the claiment in the employer’s restaurant during the first six pay periods. Certain other but lesser deductions were also claimed by the employer. In this dispute between employer and claimant, the issue was whether the claimant had in fact been overpaid during the first six pay periods and if such was the case, whether the employer could charge such overpay-ments against the claimant’s wages for the last period.
It is true that the complaint in this action alleged failure to pay the minimum wage. However, the evidence in the case reviewed all of the debits and credits between the parties for the entire period of the employment. Evidence of a settlement of the dispute between the parties, was also received in evidence. The jury rendered á verdict for the claimant in the exact amount of the settlement as testified to by claimant’s witnesses. The record clearly shows that the claimant received in excess of the minimum wage for the period, to which the dispute between the parties relat*234ed. Under the evidence the jury must have found either that claimant was entitled to the amount mentioned in the settlement under the contract between the parties, or that the settlement was binding on the parties. A finding that claimant had not received the minimum wage for the period during which the disputed items arose would be contrary to the evidence. The judgment in this case cannot therefore be construed as a judgment for minimum wages and consequently Section 34-06-16 N.D.C.C. does not apply. I therefore, concur in a reversal of that part of the judgment which allows attorney fees.
I join in the special concurrence of Chief Justice BURKE.
ERICKSTAD, Judge.