As the cost of living continues to rise across the nation, many people-including those here in Indiana-are finding it harder and harder to support themselves. Because despite the fact that companies are finally starting to rebound after the recession, wages continue to flounder.
It’s this fact that has many Weight Watchers employees furious. According to comments posted on the Weight Watchers website, a majority of their employees feel that they aren’t being properly compensated for their time and work they put in to their jobs. And while tensions swirl around talks of low wages and no compensation for additional time worked, many people across the nation are wondering if the company could see more than disgruntled employees in the future.
Several employees in the last few months have pointed out to news reporters that a majority of the workforce at Weight Watchers is women. Coupled with low wages, many of them feel that they are being paid less simply because they are women. An accusation like that could lead into complicated litigation for the company if it can be proven that it has violated the Fair Labor Act or the Equal Pay Act in any way.
This wouldn’t be the first time Weight Watchers has found itself in the midst of a lawsuit surrounding unfair labor practices. Only two years ago the company reached a $6.2 million settlement to end a class action in California. Workers complained that they were frequently asked to work through their lunch breaks; a portion of time, the employees proved, they were not being paid for.
Although the majority of the employees feel that they are not being adequately compensated for the time they put into the job, several of the comments made by other employees raise other red flags that would seem to suggest other employment violations. Like we stated before, if Weight Watchers does not attend to these matters quickly, they could have more than disgruntled employees on their hands.
Source: Yahoo Finance, “Low Pay at Weight Watchers Stirs Protest as Stars Rake It In,” Steven Greenhouse, Feb. 25, 2013
