Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone
A former Texas firefighter has filed suit claiming his former employer failed to pay overtime in accordance with federal law and wrongly claimed the special FLSA exemption available to public agency fire departments under 29 U.S.C. § 207(k). Allen Jones filed suit today in US District Court for the Northern District of Texas against the Briar Reno Fire Department, Inc.
Jones left the department in March, 2025 for reasons that are not explained in the complaint. He brought the suit as a proposed class action. He contends that he regularly worked more than 40 hours per week but was not paid time-and-a-half for those hours as required under the FLSA. In some cases, he was paid no overtime premium at all. In others, the department paid an overtime rate based on the §207(k) exemption, which allows public agency fire departments to calculate overtime on a work period basis (e.g., only after 159 hours in a 21-day cycle), rather than the standard 40-hour week.
The case the highlights a critical legal distinction that many fire departments overlook: whether they qualify as a “public agency” under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). According to the complaint, the Briar Reno Fire Department, Inc. is not a public agency. It is a domestic nonprofit corporation, not a governmental entity. As such, it does not qualify for the §207(k) exemption. Nor does it fall under the “small fire department exemption” found in 29 U.S.C. § 213(b)(20), which applies only to departments with fewer than five employees in fire protection activities.
Jones claims he worked a 48-96 schedule, so anything beyond 40 hours in a 7-day week will have to be paid at overtime rate. The lawsuit also claims the department failed to compensate firefighters for all hours worked, including pre-shift duties such as shift changeovers and equipment checks. These hours, the plaintiff argues, were required and performed with the department’s knowledge.
If successful, the lawsuit could result in a significant award of damages for unpaid, liquidated damages, attorneys’ fees, and potentially certification of a collective action involving other similarly situated firefighters.
Here is a copy of the complaint:
