The Third Circuit Sets Forth New Test For Joint-Employer Status Under The FLSA

The Third Circuit recently elaborated on the test for joint-employer status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in the context of a parent company providing shared services to its subsidiaries in In re: Enterprise Rent-a-Car Wage & Hour Employment Practices Litigation, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 13229 (3d Cir. June 28, 2012). 

Enterprise Holdings, Inc. is the parent company and sole stockholder of 38 domestic subsidiaries operating rental car agencies. Plaintiff Nickolas Hickton, a former assistant manager at one of the subsidiaries, filed a nationwide collective action in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, alleging that he and other similarly situated managers were misclassified as exempt, and were due back wages for overtime, liquidated damages and attorneys' fees under the FLSA. Hickton sued both the subsidiary and Enterprise Holdings, alleging that Enterprise Holdings was liable as a joint employer. After the district court