ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — A class action settlement against HCA Healthcare could provide tens of thousands of current and former Mission Health employees with back wages.
The $1,563,000 settlement stems from a civil complaint filed by Sharon McRee, who worked for Mission between 2002 and 2022. The complaint alleged that Mission Hospitals used a rounding system for the time clocks that short-changed employees on the actual time that they worked.
The complaint also alleged that the hospitals automatically deducted time for meal breaks that employees did not take.
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“We’re pleased with the result and glad that we could help these folks,” said Attorney Matthew Lee of Lee Segui, PLLC, a Raleigh-based law firm. “This settlement will return to many thousands of workers time that was ’rounded’ against them and that they will now receive. Every amount of pay matters when you’re working hard to make ends meet, particularly here in Western North Carolina, while the area is still recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Helene.”
The class action complaint is expected to include approximately 16,100 class members, according to Lee.
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Members of the class action settlement will automatically receive a check after the courts grant final approval.
The complaint was filed in April 2024. The settlement also approved $536,064.63 in attorneys’ fees and expenses, which the court found were reasonable.
All claims in the civil action will then be dismissed with prejudice. According to the court filing, the order and agreement are not an admission or concession on the part of the released parties “with respect to any claim of any fault, liability, wrongdoing or damages whatsoever.”