If you received this Notice, you may be entitled to a payment from the settlement of a collective action lawsuit if you complete and return the claim form.

A state court authorized this notice. This is not a solicitation from a lawyer.

 

  • A former Vanguard employee known as the “Plaintiff” has sued Vanguard in a lawsuit filed as a collective action under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) in the Circuit Court of the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit in and for Broward County, Florida. The lawsuit is known as Truong v. The Vanguard Group, Inc. Case No. CACE23022524. The lawsuit alleges that The Vanguard Group, Inc., referred to as either “Vanguard” or “Defendant,” failed to properly compensate certain employees who worked in a position primarily involving answering phone calls for all hours worked over 40 hours per week at any time the FLSA Covered Period. Specifically, Plaintiff alleges that Vanguard failed to pay such employees for time worked prior to the start of their scheduled shifts “booting up” their systems, loading necessary software and/or reviewing email in order to be “call ready” at the start of their scheduled shifts.
  • Vanguard denies the allegations in the lawsuit and maintains that it properly compensated its employees. The parties have entered into this settlement solely with the intention to avoid further disputes and litigation with the attendant inconvenience and expense. The Court has not made any ruling on the merits of the Plaintiff’s claims, and no party has prevailed in this action.
  • Under the allocation formula created by the settlement, if you qualify you will be estimated to receive a settlement share, subject to deductions for applicable taxes. This amount is based on the number of weeks you worked for Vanguard in a position primarily involving answering phone calls during the time period covered by this settlement, according to Vanguard’s records. The final amount to which you may be entitled may be higher or lower than the estimated amount.

Your legal rights may be affected, and you have a choice to make now:

Summary of Your Legal Rights and Options in this Settlement

RETURN THE CONSENT FORM

By returning a properly completed Consent to Join and Release Form, you agree to participate in the settlement, receive a monetary settlement payment, and release your claims.

DO NOT RETURN THE CONSENT FORM

If you do not wish to participate in, or be bound by, the settlement, you should not return the Consent to Join and Release Form. If you do not timely return a properly completed Consent to Join and Release Form, you will not participate in or be bound by the settlement and will not receive a monetary settlement payment.

 

  • These rights and options – and the deadlines to exercise them – are explained in this notice.

BASIC INFORMATION

1. What is a collective action?
In a “Collective Action,” one or more people called “Named Plaintiffs” sue on behalf of people who have similar claims. The other employees who have similar claims who opt in to the Collective Action will become “Collective Members.” You may opt in to the Collective Action and participate in the settlement of the lawsuit by signing and returning the Consent to Join and Release Form. 

2. Why is there a settlement?
The Judge has not decided who will win the lawsuit. So, all parties run the risk of losing. This settlement is a compromise. It allows both sides to avoid the costs, delays, and risks of further litigation. In reaching this settlement, Vanguard denies that it violated any laws, and continues to assert that its pay practices were and are entirely legal.

BENEFITS – WHAT YOU GET

3. What does the settlement provide?
Vanguard has agreed to pay up to $587,500.00 into a fund to pay Collective Members’ settlement payments, Court-approved attorneys’ fees and costs of $204,198.37, Court-approved General Release Payments totaling $10,000.00 to two General Release Payment Recipients in exchange for a full general release of their individual claims, and payroll and other applicable taxes (except for the employer’s share of payroll taxes), and the Settlement Claims Administrator’s fees and costs. Vanguard has agreed to pay the employer’s share of payroll taxes separately in addition to the fund. 

After deducting the Court-approved attorneys’ fees and costs, Court-approved General Release Payments, and payroll and other applicable taxes (except for the employer’s share of payroll taxes), and the Settlement Claims Administrator’s fees and costs, the remaining amount will be divided among current and former employees who are covered by the settlement based on the number of weeks they worked in the covered position during the periods covered by the settlement. Settlement checks which are not cashed within 120 days of issuance will be null and void. 

4. How much will my payment be and how was it calculated?
Based on the formula that has been approved by the Court, in exchange for properly executing and timely returning your Consent to Join and Release Form, you will receive a settlement share, half of which is subject to deductions for applicable taxes and withholdings like any other paycheck, and for which you will receive a W-2; and half of which will be reported on an IRS Form 1099. The final amount to which you may be entitled may be higher or lower than the estimated amount. The Settlement Agreement contains the exact allocation formula. You may obtain a copy of the Settlement Agreement by following the instructions in Paragraph 11, below. 

5. What if I do not want to participate?
If you do not wish to participate, or do not wish to be bound by the settlement, do not return the claim form.

6. How can I get my payment?
To get your payment, you must fully complete the Consent to Join and Release Form and mail it to the Settlement Claims Administrator postmarked no later than April 23, 2024. You may also e-mail or fax the Consent to Join and Release Form to the Settlement Claims Administrator, or submit it electronically, so that it is received no later than April 23, 2024. The Settlement Claims Administrator’s complete contact information is: 

Vanguard Settlement Claims Administrator
c/o Rust Consulting Inc. - 8531
P.O. Box 2396
Faribault, MN 55021-9096
Phone: (877) 418-8076
Facsimile: (248) 733-6428
E-mail: info@VGlitigation.com

If you return a properly completed Consent to Join and Release Form to the Settlement Claims Administrator by the deadline, you will be sent a settlement check after all appeals have been exhausted.

7. When will I get my payment?
You will be sent a check within approximately five months of submitting your Consent to Join and Release Form. Please be patient. 

8. What am I giving up to get a payment and join the Collective?
You will not become a member of the Collective Action and participate in the settlement unless you return a properly completed Consent to Join and Release Form by the deadline. Once you become part of the Collective Action, you cannot sue, continue to sue, or be a party in any other lawsuit against Vanguard about any of the claims at issue in this case or any other federal, state and/or local wage and hour claims. Specifically, you will release Vanguard and its past and present subsidiaries, affiliates, parents and joint venturers and each of their past and present officers, directors, employees, attorneys, benefit plans, plan administrators, and agents, as well as each entity’s or individual’s successors and assigns (collectively the “Released Parties”) from: any and all wage and hour and wage payment claims under any and all statutes, regulations, ordinances, or common law theories, which accrued during your employment in positions primarily involving answering phone calls, during the Relevant Period for which weeks you are being compensated pursuant to the terms of the Settlement Agreement between the parties to the Litigation, whether known or unknown, and including, without limitation, all FLSA, Pennsylvania, Arizona, North Carolina and other state and federal claims for overtime, minimum and straight time wages, failure to provide compliant meal/rest breaks and/or to pay meal and rest period premiums, inaccurate wage statements or notices, failure to pay wages due to discharged and quitting employees, failure to maintain required records, and claims for penalties, interest, liquidated damages, attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses. It also means that all of the Court’s orders will apply to you and legally bind you.

THE LAWYERS REPRESENTING YOU

9. Do I have a lawyer in this case?
The Court has decided that the lawyers at the law firm of the Shavitz Law Group, P.A. are qualified to represent you and all Collective Action Members. These lawyers are called “Plaintiffs’ Counsel.” You will not be charged for these lawyers. You can find more information about Plaintiffs’ Counsel at: www.shavitzlaw.com. Otherwise, if you have any questions, you may contact Plaintiffs’ Counsel at:

Gregg I. Shavitz
Paolo Meireles
Tamra C. Givens
Shavitz Law Group, P.A.
951 Yamato Rd, Suite 285
Boca Raton, FL 33431
Telephone: (561) 447-8888
SLG@shavitzlaw.com

You do not need to retain your own attorney in order to participate in the settlement. However, if you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense.

10. How will the lawyers be paid? 
The Court has approved payment of $195,833.33 for attorneys’ fees for Plaintiffs’ Counsel. These fees will compensate Plaintiffs’ Counsel for investigating the facts, litigating the case, and negotiating the settlement. The Court also has approved reimbursement to Plaintiffs’ Counsel of $8,365.04 for their out-of-pocket costs.

GETTING MORE INFORMATION

11. Are there more details about the settlement?
This notice summarizes the proposed settlement. More details are in a Settlement Agreement. If there is any discrepancy between this notice and the Settlement Agreement, the terms of the Settlement Agreement will control. You can obtain a copy of the Settlement Agreement by sending a request in writing, to the Settlement Claims Administrator at the contact information listed in Paragraph 6, above. Alternatively, you can contact your lawyers at Shavitz Law Group, P.A. at the contact information listed at Paragraph 9, above.