Employees Sue TRW Over Off-the-Clock Work

Seven former and current employees of a TRW Inc. auto parts plant filed suit claiming they were forced to work off-the-clock for about 15 minutes of every work day for a decade or more. The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court seeks back wages and liquidated damages for all current employees and those who worked at the Lebanon, Tenn., plant over the last three years. It also seeks a jury trial. Cleveland-based TRW has about 650 employees at the plant, which makes steering gears for trucks and operates 24 hours a day. The lawsuit alleges the company “willfully, knowingly, and/or recklessly violated” federal law. David Sanford, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said the off-the-clock work was discovered during an investigation of race discrimination allegations at the plant. TRW spokesman Jay McCaffrey declined to comment on the lawsuit, saying the company’s attorneys had not yet seen a copy.