Sarah M. Block
Wed, 09/07/2022
On August 23, 2022, the parties to the lawsuit Comin and Briggs v. IBM, Case No. 3:19-cv-07261 (C.D. Cal.), filed a proposed class action settlement with the court, requesting preliminary approval of the $4.75 million settlement. The settlement resolves claims that IBM underpaid approximately 1,500 sales representatives in California by failing to provide written commission plans in accordance with Section 2751 of the California Labor Code, and by improperly capping commission payments to a subset of those sales representatives. The court will consider the settlement at a hearing on October 6, 2022.
In the case, the sales representatives alleged that IBM failed to provide them with a written, signed, and enforceable contract regarding how their commissions would be calculated and paid. They also alleged that IBM improperly capped the commissions of some sales representatives. Notably, California law requires employers to provide all employees paid at least in part by commissions with a written contract explaining the method by which the commissions shall be computed and paid; the law also requires the written contract to be signed by the employee, and that the employer obtain a signed receipt from the employee. Instead of providing a compliant written contract to the sales representatives, the plaintiffs alleged that IBM provided them only with a letter stating that it is not a contract or promise by the company to pay any commissions.
The class settlement covers all persons who resided in California while working for IBM on a commissions incentive plan between November 4, 2015, and the date the court grants preliminary approval of the settlement. The settlement also covers a subclass of approximately 60 sales representatives in California for the same time period who were not paid the amount of commissions reflected in the individual’s commissions formula, i.e., sales representatives who had their commissions capped. If the court approves the settlement, each class member will get $300, without any requirement to opt-in or submit a claim. Assuming none of the class members opt out of the settlement, members of the subclass who were not paid all of their commissions will also receive approximately 47% of the disputed commissions.
If you believe that you have not been properly paid in accordance with federal and state law, or if you have questions about your rights to minimum wages and overtime compensation, contact us today for more information.
