Employees at Nevada Gold Mines have filed a class-action lawsuit against the company claiming that its failed to pay employees for all time worked, which includes overtime pay.
Launched in the U.S. District Court of Nevada, the suit claims the mine requires the company shuttle to the parking lot tot he mine, which adds an extra hour and twenty minutes each way, is unpaid. The company, however, states that the travel time is uncompensated and therefore ‘off the clock.’
Filed on Oct. 22, the lawsuit also states that the employer requires workers to perform “principal job duties” such as putting on and removing protective gear, gathering and storing equipment, attending “line out” meetings, and washing up, all without compensation.
These activities, which are essential for performing their roles in the mines, take approximately 15 to 45 minutes daily. Additionally, the lawsuit claims that workers inside the mine must work through their entire shifts without taking meal breaks or rest periods. The plaintiffs are asking for unpaid wages, including overtime wages, liquidated damages, statutory damages and any other penalties available.
NGM is a joint venture between Barrick Gold Corporation (TSE: ABX) (NYSE: GOLD) and Newmont Corporation (TSE: NGT) (NYSE: NEM), the world’s two largest gold companies. It’s also the single largest goal producing complex in the world, according to both the suit and the mine’s website.
“NGM assumes that Plaintiffs and the other Hourly Employees work exactly the amount of time allocated in their pre-scheduled shifts each workday and pays them only for these pre-scheduled hours,” said the lawsuit.
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Nevada Gold Mines violated Nevada law by failing to pay: lawsuit
The lawsuit claims that NGM required plaintiffs and other hourly workers to work 48 to 60 hours per week, often in 12-hour shifts across four to five days, without providing overtime pay. It further alleges that NGM did not allow workers to clock in and out or record their actual hours worked, instead imposing a shift rate pay scheme on employees. Additionally, the lawsuit asserts that NGM violated Nevada law by failing to pay terminated employees all earned wages.
This case is part of a broader pattern of labour disputes involving NGM. In 2019, following the merger of Barrick Gold and Newmont to form NGM, the company ceased recognizing a union that had represented Newmont employees since 1965. This led to legal action by the National Labour Relations Board (NLRB), which accused NGM of unlawful conduct. The dispute was settled in 2020 when NGM agreed to recognize the union and restore benefits.
The federal labour agency said Nevada Gold Mines’ “illegal conduct threatens irreparable harm to national labour policy encouraging good-faith collective bargaining, the unit employees’ right to free choice, employee support for the union” and its process for dealing with complaints.
In March 2023, NGM and the union negotiated a new three-year contract, providing over a thousand workers with an 8.5 per cent wage increase over the contract’s term, along with other protections. This agreement marked a significant development in labour relations following the contentious merger.
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joseph@mugglehead.com
