John,

Employees who worked during the 2018-2019 government shutdown must join the lawsuit by December 7, 2020 to be eligible for damages.

Join here: https://www.2018governmentshutdown.com/.

Background

Heidi Burakiewicz and the law firm Kalijarvi, Chuzi, Newman & Fitch (“KCNF”), in conjunction with AFGE, filed the first lawsuit against the United States related to the 2018-2019 Government Shutdown on behalf of federal employees who were forced to work without pay. The deadline to sign up to be a plaintiff in this lawsuit is coming up soon. Employees who fail to sign up may be ineligible to participate or receive damages.

Important Facts

  1. You MUST fill out and submit the form on the case website to join the case and be eligible to receive damages.

Unlike traditional class actions where people are automatically included, you MUST sign up to be part of a case alleging a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). Only the people who fill out and submit the necessary forms will be eligible to recover damages from our case. The link to the sign-up form is: https://www.2018governmentshutdown.com/.

  1. You MUST complete and submit the form on the case website before December 7, 2020.

The FLSA has a statute of limitations that could prohibit new claims as early as two-years from the date employees missed their pay checks during the shutdown. In order to guarantee we are able to process your sign up forms and file them with the court before the statutory deadline, you must complete the sign up forms at https://www.2018governmentshutdown.com on or before December 7, 2020.

  1. A federal judge has already ruled in a case addressing the 2013 government shutdown that the government violated the FLSA and owes liquidated damages to federal employees

Heidi Burakiewicz, who filed the only lawsuit on behalf of federal workers following the 2013 government shutdown, obtained a ruling in that case that the government :

(1) violated the FLSA when it failed to pay covered employees who continued to work during the shutdown on their regularly scheduled payday; and

(2) was liable for liquidated damages because it failed to act in good faith.

We vividly remember the impact the 2018-2019 shutdown had on so many working families, and we want to see as many people as possible sign up for the case to ensure they are eligible to recover damages, and also with the hope that through strength in numbers we can play a part in avoiding future shutdowns.

Again, you can sign up to be part of the lawsuit at: https://www.2018governmentshutdown.com/

You will find more information about the case on the website. Please remember, you MUST fill out and submit the necessary forms to be eligible to recover damages from our case. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact KCNF by email at [email protected] or by phone during normal business hours at 202-331-9260.

To make sure you receive emails from KCNF about this lawsuit, please add [email protected] to your email contacts.

In Solidarity,

AFGE

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