Wage Law

International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) has agreed to pay $65 million to settle a federal class-action lawsuit, Rosenburg v. IBM, US District Court, Northern District (San Francisco) case no. 06-cv-00430-PJH, brought on behalf of approximately 32,000 workers classified as "Technical Services Professional and Information Technology Specialists." IBM paid the workers a straight salary and classified them as exempt professionals under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and California Industrial Welfare Commission wage orders. The settlement is subject to court approval by judge Phyllis J. Hamilton. The hearing for preliminary approval of the settlement, which is unopposed, is set for January 3, 2007. The class is represented by Steven G. Zieff, of Rudy, Exelrod & Zieff, along with seven other law firms.