NOTICE OF LAWSUIT ON BEHALF OF RELIANT THERAPISTS, THERAPY ASSISTANTS, and SPEECH LANGUAGE PATHOLOGISTS
Please read carefully. Your legal rights may be affected.
What is this Notice about?
This Notice is about a Nationwide Collective Action lawsuit commenced by two former Therapists employed by Reliant Pro Rehab LLC, d/b/a Reliant Rehab in federal court in Massachusetts alleging that Reliant Rehab Therapists (including Physical Therapists (PTs), Physical Therapy Assistants (PTAs), Occupational Therapists (OTs), Certified and non-Certified Occupational Therapy Assistants (COTAs and OTAs), and Speech Language Pathologists (SLP))
worked off-the-clock and were not paid for all time worked.
The named Plaintiff, Haggerty, as authorized by an Order of the Federal District Court, herein seek to Notify you of this pending Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) pending Collective Action lawsuit that affects your federally protected
Overtime Wage Rights. This Notice provides information so that you may choose whether to join or not join the lawsuit as an opt-in plaintiff and claim any unpaid overtime hours you believe may be owed to you from your time of employment with Reliant Rehab during the 3 years preceding the date of this notice.
This NOTICE is time sensitive; action is required if you wish to join the 43 present Plaintiffs who are participating in this action and assert your claim for unpaid overtime wages and other damages.
What is the lawsuit about?
Former employee Therapists of Reliant Rehab brought this lawsuit against Reliant Rehab claiming they were not paid for all time worked, including time worked during unpaid meal breaks and overtime hours worked. Therapists claim that they were pressured against reporting or recording all time they worked due to Reliant Rehab’s productivity requirements (%) and its De Facto policies, including suffering to work off the clock. The Plaintiff Therapists here also claim that reporting overtime hours would negatively impact productivity requirements and lead to discipline or termination of their employment.
The named Plaintiff, Haggerty, seeks to recover for herself and on behalf of all present and former Therapists who receive this Notice and which means you, damages for all unpaid overtime wages incurred during the preceding 3 years of the date of this notice, plus an equal sum of the received wages as liquidated damages, plus recovery of Plaintiffs’ attorney’s fees and costs of this action.
Reliant Rehab denies the allegations of the lawsuit and contends that it has paid Therapists for all time worked and was not aware of any work performed off-the-clock.
Why did I get this Notice?
You received this Notice because you worked as a Reliant Rehab Therapist in the United States after August 17, 2019, the time period covered by this lawsuit, and your name and contact information was delivered to the Plaintiffs’ attorneys by Order of the Court by Reliant Rehab who identified you as class member which thus required you to be notified of this action, and your right to assert a claim and become a party plaintiff by executing the enclosed Consent to Join form.
What Are My Options?
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Submit a Consent Form
You may join this lawsuit by:
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Clicking the Submit Consent Form button you may complete and electronically sign the Consent to Join lawsuit form prior to May 30, 2023; or
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Completing and returning the Consent to Join form before May 30, 2023 by either 1) mailing it to Haggerty v. Reliant Rehab, c/o CPT Group, Inc.,50 Corporate Park, Irvine, CA 92606,
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Using the self-addressed envelope that was enclosed in your mailed Notice packet; 2) faxing it to 1-949-419-3446, or; 3) scanning and emailing a legible copy of it to
ReliantFLSAOTAdmin@cptgroup.com.
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Do Nothing
By not submitting the Consent to Join form you will be excluded from the lawsuit; you will not need to do anything further, and you will not be bound by the results of the lawsuit. You will not receive any share of any settlement for back wages which might be reached in this action nor any jury award of damages.
Effects of joining this Case
If you do choose to join this action, you will be bound by any ruling, judgment, award, or settlement, whether favorable or unfavorable. That means that if the Plaintiffs win or settle this case, you may be eligible to receive a payment for back wages; if they lose, no money will be awarded, and you may not be able to file another lawsuit regarding the disputed amounts of wages paid.
You should also understand that if you join this lawsuit, you may be required to participate in the lawsuit by, among other things, producing documents, answering written questions, and testifying under oath at deposition or at trial.
What happens if I decide not to join the lawsuit?
If you do not join the lawsuit, you will not be bound by its outcome. This means that regardless of the result in this lawsuit, you are free to file your own lawsuit, either on your own behalf or through an attorney. Please be advised that there is a statute of limitations that limits the time period to bring a claim and if the statute of limitations expires, you cannot bring a claim.
What About the Arbitration Agreement I was forced to sign by Reliant Rehab in order to keep my job?
Beginning in August of 2022, in reaction to the filing of one or more lawsuits alleging unpaid overtime wages, Reliant Rehab commenced with the roll out of a forced and mandatory signing of Arbitration Agreements under threat of termination of employment.
Please be advised that the Arbitration Agreement you were required or forced to sign by Reliant Rehab as of August 2022 to the present day does not bar or foreclose you from participating and opting into this case. In fact, if you are receiving this NOTICE, you are both required by Court order to receive this Notice, and secondly, you are entitled to execute the Consent to Join form and join this lawsuit as an opt in plaintiff, subject to the possibility of a later determination by the Court which may or may not change this. Further, you cannot be subjected to any disciplinary action, retaliation, or any adverse employment action by Reliant Rehab for executing the Consent to Join Form. Thus, Reliant Rehab cannot at this juncture force you to arbitrate any claim you might have for unpaid overtime wages against them under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Can the Company retaliate against me for joining this lawsuit?
No. Federal law, specifically the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), prohibits the Company from firing you or taking other adverse action against you because you decided to join the lawsuit.
Who will be my lawyers if I join the lawsuit, and how will the lawyers be paid?
If you join the lawsuit, you will be represented by:
FELDMAN LEGAL GROUP
Mitchell Feldman, Esq.
6916 W. Linebaugh Avenue
Suite #101
Tampa, FL 33625
Tel: (855) 442-8155
mfeldman@flandgatrialattorneys.com
mail@feldmanlegal.us
www.floridatrialattorneys.net
SHAVITZ LAW GROUP, P.A.
Gregg Shavitz, Esq.
Michael Palitz, Esq.
951 Yamato Road
Boca Raton, FL 33431
Tel: (800) 616-4000
info@shavitzlaw.com
www.shavitzlaw.com
BARRETT JOHNSTON MARTIN & GARRISON, PLLC
Jerry Martin, Esq.
Seth Hyatt, Esq.
414 Union Street
Suite 900
Nashville, TN 37219
Tel: (615) 244-2202
info@barrettjohnston.com
www.barrettjohnston.com
These lawyers will be paid only if they win the lawsuit or obtain a settlement and may receive up to one-third of any money awarded to employee-plaintiffs by the Court or obtained through a settlement or may receive their fees and costs separately from Reliant Rehab. If the Therapists lose the lawsuit, you will not have to pay the Plaintiffs’ lawyers any fees or costs.
How do I get more information about the lawsuit?
If you have questions about this Notice or the lawsuit, please call or e-mail the Plaintiffs’ lawyers at the telephone numbers and email above.
THE FEDERAL COURT IN MASSACHUSETTS HAS AUTHORIZED THIS NOTICE, BUT HAS NOT MADE ANY RULING AS TO THE MERITS OF THE LAWSUIT.
PLEASE DO NOT CALL OR WRITE TO THE JUDGE ABOUT THIS NOTICE.