Rite Aid Corp. will pay $12 million to resolve a class action by 25,000 of its California employees who allege the company failed to reimburse them for uniforms, under an agreement given final approval in the Northern District of California.
The class members will split roughly $7.4 million, and class counsel will receive nearly $4 million in attorneys’ fees and approximately $300,000 for litigation costs.
The court awarded named plaintiffs Kristal Nucci, Kelly Shaw, and Ana Goswick $7,500 each in service awards, cutting their request for $10,000 each.
The plaintiffs filed the suit in 2019 on behalf of other non-exempt employees, except pharmacists, pharmacy interns, and asset protection agents, under California’s Labor Code and Private Attorneys General Act.
The employees alleged that Rite Aid’s Team Colors policy, which required them to buy and wear navy blue tops and khaki pants to work, qualified as a uniform and that Rite Aid violated state wage law by failing to reimburse them for these expenses.
The failure to reimburse for uniforms also resulted in failure to pay minimum wage, to issue accurate wage statements, and to pay all wages due on regularly scheduled paydays, the complaint alleged.
The court granted preliminary approval of the settlement Feb. 3.
Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler issued the order.
Aiman-Smith & Marcy represents the class. Klein, Hockel, Iezza & Patel PC represents Rite Aid.
The case is Nucci v. Rite Aid Corp., N.D. Cal., No. 19-cv-01434, 5/26/22.
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