Wonder Bread Drivers Dealt Setback in Maine Overtime Lawsuit

Flowers Foods Inc. and related companies can ask to decertify a collective action seeking overtime pay by Maine drivers who distribute Wonder Bread, Nature’s Own, Tastykake, and other baked-goods brands, a federal court in the state said.

The driver-distributors say they’re misclassified as independent contractors and are actually employees covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act’s time-and-a-half compensation requirements for work exceeding 40 hours a week, according to the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine.

Flowers Foods and its subsidiaries Lepage Bakeries Park Street LLC and CK Sales Co. argue that, even if the distributors are employees, exemptions ...