On November 18, 2009, it was announced that BJ’s Wholesale Club Inc. had settled a wage and hour lawsuit for $9.3 million.  The suit, brought by a former employee as a class and collective action, alleged that the company, a retail warehouse, violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and Massachusetts law by misclassifying department and other managers as exempt employees and failing to pay them properly for their regular and overtime hours.  The class representative claimed that the managers’ primary responsibilities included hourly duties such as loading and unloading materials, stocking shelves, and other activities that are not exempt functions under federal and state overtime laws.  BJ’s maintains that it is compliant with the FLSA and applicable state laws.  Approximately 1,500 current and former midlevel managers who were allegedly misclassified will be eligible to receive payments to compensate them for overtime work and other pay claims since 2007.