CENTRAL NEW YORK -- Within the next few days, employees who work directly with patient care will be receiving a letter from the Rochester based law firm that is handling this suit.

It was back in November that a lawsuit was filed against Crouse and St. Joseph's Hospitals in Syracuse and Faxton-St. Luke's Healthcare in Utica. The suit claims all three hospitals broke labor laws by automatically deducting money from employee paychecks for a lunch break, even if they worked through those breaks.

Patrick Solomon, of Thomas and Solomon Law Firm, is handling the case and says employees will soon receive a letter asking if they wish to join in the lawsuit. By doing so, they would be eligible to claim any potential finances recovered. Employees have until September 15th to fill out the form, which would allow the initial stages of litigation to begin.

"The next steps would be that after the notice goes out, we form a class and decide who's in it. We then move on to some discovery and a trial would be a ways off," said Solomon.

Solomon says federal laws prevent employers from threatening or penalizing an employee for taking part in such a lawsuit.

We did put calls into all three hospitals. Crouse Hospital responded by saying their pay practices have been deemed acceptable by the Department of Labor.

But is there any time frame on when this case could hit the courts? When asked about that, Solomon said it could be a while, possibly a year from now. He says their main priority is getting these letters situated.

Lawsuit information:

Thomas & Solomon LLP: (585) 272-0540

www.theemploymentattorneys.com

www.hospitalovertime.com