Pharmacist files class action lawsuit against Walmart

A California pharmacist has filed a class-action lawsuit against Walmart, accusing the retail giant of cheating pharmacists out of work breaks and overtime pay.

According to an article on lawyersandsettlement.com, Afrouz Nikmanesh worked as a Walmart pharmacist from November 2003 through September 2014. Nikmanesh also alleges that Walmart did not pay her and other pharmacists for time studying for and completing immunization-training programs. Nikmanesh’s lawsuit was originally filed in Orange County Superior Court last December. It was moved to federal court this month.

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“There is a well-defined community of interest in the questions of law and fact affecting the classes plaintiff seeks to represent,” the lawsuit said. “The class members’ claims against defendant involve questions of general or common interest, in that the claims are based on the defendant’s implementation and utilization of a policy under which [employees] ... did not receive any overtime compensation, minimum wage, or any compensation whatsoever during the years in question.”

Walmart has not commented on the lawsuit, which seeks to cover current Walmart pharmacists as well as those who worked at the retail chain within the past four years.

In the past year, several pharmacists have filed lawsuits against retail chains alleging they were stiffed of overtime pay or other business-related costs.  Pharmacist Junius Baugh recently filed a lawsuit against CVS. Baugh alleges that CVS owes more than 1,000 pharmacists for unpaid overtime wages.

Baugh claims he should have been paid $88.40 for the overtime hours worked, but was instead paid his regular hourly rate of $58.93 for all hours worked. CVS has not issued a public response to the lawsuit.

In August, California pharmacist Debra Short filed a lawsuit against Walgreens that claims it violated state and federal laws by not paying pharmacists for training hours or time spent maintaining uniforms. “As a result of the defendants’ unlawful conduct, plaintiff and the other class members have suffered damages in an amount, subject to proof, to the extent they were not paid the full amount of wages earned during each pay period,” the lawsuit stated.

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