Plaintiff Susan Kellar worked as a sewing manager for Summit Seating, a small manufacturer of seating for buses, trucks and vans. Although she worked on an hourly basis, she supervised seven or eight other employees. After Kellar resigned, she sued Summit under the FLSA and also Indiana’s wage payment law, seeking back pay. While she worked for Summit, her shift began at 5 am. She alleged that she regularly arrived at the factory between 15 and 45 minutes before the start of her shift and spent most of that time working without pay. She said that she did so in order to get her subordinates up and running close to the start of their 5 am shift. Kellar admitted that no one told her to arrive early, but claimed that she had done so for the benefit of her employer. Kellar’s sister, Mamie Spice, disagreed, testifying that her sister did not work during the pre-shift period, but chatted and drank coffee with her until their shifts began. 

1. What was the legal issue in this case? What did the appeals court decide?

2. What uncompensated work did the plaintiff claim she performed? What should the district court have done with the statement of another employee – the sister of the plaintiff, no less – that the plaintiff did not engage in work prior to her official start time? 

3. Why does the appeals court find that the work in question was nonpreliminary? More than de minimis? 

4. Why does the appeals court find for the employer even though it failed to pay the plaintiff for compensable time? 

5. Do you agree with the decision in this case? Why or why not? What if she had told the owners that she was doing this extra work, they told her not to do so, but she continued coming in early because it was the only to get started on time? Would the outcome of the case be different? Why or why not?