back to article IT giant CSC screwed its 1,000 sysadmins out of their overtime – jury

Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) “willfully” misclassified 1,000 of its system administrators to avoid paying the techies overtime. On Wednesday, a jury in Connecticut, USA, found in favor of staff who had brought 11 claims of labor law violations against the IT services provider. Their class-action lawsuit, launched in …

  1. Youngone Silver badge

    Appalling

    Greedy workers taking money from hardworking shareholders.

    1. Throatwarbler Mangrove Silver badge
      Meh

      Re: Appalling

      I refuse to upvote this post.

  2. Throatwarbler Mangrove Silver badge
    Paris Hilton

    Overtime?

    Wossat, then?

    1. User McUser
      1. Roger Kynaston

        Re: Overtime?

        Scott got it wrong on this one.

        The cleaner should have said:

        ¿Esta trbajando tan tarde otra vez Alice?

        </pedant>

  3. Bob Vistakin
    Childcatcher

    Their solution to a $5m fine?

    Sack as many workers as that would cover in wages. Simples.

    1. phuzz Silver badge

      Re: Their solution to a $5m fine?

      Don't forget step two! You then have to either outsource your current workers, and/or change their job descriptions enough that they don't qualify for overtime.

      Otherwise they'll rack up the overtime as they try and keep up with the extra workload.

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I work as a procurement manager for a major corporation.

    I am glad to say we have finally barred any interaction with HPE/DXC/CSC.

    DXC are a combination of the worst outsource IT management service companies in the world. The word is spreading fast, thankfully, meaning we can finally rid ourselves of this awful company.

    DXC are failing existing contracts due to lack of competent staff and documentation. They await customer monthly payments to commence beginning a project, using the money to purchase hardware and software; their past intelligent staff have disappeared during the merger.

    To any senior manager considering allowing them to bid on a tender: don't; they deserve to die.

    If you need further backup reasoning, simply search TheRegister or speak to existing contractors who are attempting to prop up this toxic company.

    1. Bob Vistakin
      Facepalm

      Hear hear - well put sir!

    2. Kabukiwookie

      The joys of working with DXC

      Was working with some DXC 'experts' on a handover of responsibilities; a piece of work to which 10 weeks were allocated.

      After 5 weeks, the manager overseeing the transition mentions in a meeting discussing progress on the handover: 'We're 5 weeks in to the handover, so we're 50% done'.

      Everyone in the meeting room looked at one another and either did a facepalm, eyeroll or were busy banging their heads into the meeting room table.

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      > I am glad to say we have finally barred any interaction with HPE/DXC/CSC.

      Hopefully Accenture is already on your list of barred interactions. They are seriously corrupt, and can be hard to remove once they have a toe-hold in.

    4. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      I remember when CSC bought out DynCorp. They thought they were just getting some white collar contract work in D.C. They had no clue DynCorp had Aviation assets...

    5. Miss Lincolnshire

      As an ex HPE ES staffer, now Contractor, with my payoff neatly stashed I rarely miss an opportunity to stick the boot in.

      The saddest thing is I don't even need to lie or exaggerate. Just tell the truth about how this appalling company operates.

      The creation of DXC was HPE & CSC's way of turning themselves from Windscale into Sellafield. A fresh start. Unfortunately all they've achieved is Chernobyl.

  5. jaycee331

    Shame we don't have any similar rules in the UK

    Upvote if you're also in a hands-on techy role and sufficiently good at it to be aligned onto a management pay-scale that strips off overtime entitlement.

  6. DNTP

    Let's play the classification game!

    "You're a manager!" they said. "It doesn't matter that you're on the bottom of the org chart, have no subordinates, only superiors, and we won't tolerate you giving us opinions on how to plan the budget or organization of the company. All that matters is that little word beside your name in our file, that lets us pay you an entry level wage, but not pay you any overtime."

    "I don't think that's fair, or actually legal," I said.

    "Fine, you've caught us trying to dick you. You're a contractor now then. Just with no contract, no contractual protection, no freedom to choose your work hours, no authority to negotiate working conditions, you'll still be managed by HR rather than Legal, and you have to buy and wear the company uniform on site. All that matters is that little word beside your name in our file, that lets us pay you an entry level wage without being responsible for your payroll taxes or healthcare benefits..."

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Let's play the classification game!

      You forgot step 3)

      Your job is gone - we're moving it to India so we can make them work 60 hours a week without worrying about overtime!

      1. DNTP

        Re: Step 3

        "After reviewing your CV and interviewing you for this position that we advertised at an entry level compensation at least, we'd like to offer you this job as an unpaid internship. You'd be performing exactly the duties of a paid employee at least fifty hours a week, without anyone here being bothered to specifically contribute to your education, and we promise not to act as a useful work reference if you leave the company. We will be reporting to the tax authority that you are in fact being compensated, but between us there will be an understanding that all 'compensation' you receive from this company will be in the form of educational experience, which you will be solely responsible for paying the appropriate income tax upon."

    2. hayzoos

      Re: Let's play the classification game!

      That moves jurisdiction to the IRS. Not that it matters much these days. I believe the IRS will target the mis-classified contractors for their taxes instead of the corporation-persons formerly known as employers.

  7. This post has been deleted by its author

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: They're amateurs.

      "He responded by cutting his real work hours to match."

      I did that with the last manager; it didn't matter if I came in at midnight to work on something, I was expected to put in a full day on top of it. My response was to shut off my phone after leaving at the 8 hour mark and getting sleep.

      Dicking with the pay of the people who keep your stuff running is a bad, bad idea.

      (anon for obvious reasons.)

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: They're amateurs.

      Good move. IBM refused to pay on-call and per-call after hours for service managers, so I refused to work on call after hours. Amazing how many of my peers just sucked it up and did the work regardless. Like IBM is some kind of worthy charity that we should help out of the goodness of our hearts.

  8. kain preacher

    In order to be exempt you must be in management and mange 2 or more people. You must be able to hire.fire/ demote/promote people. Or have your profession listed as exempt. Also if you have to college to learn a trade and then are required to get a license to practice your trade you are except to. For some reason accounts are exempt.

    Or then there is this laundry list of things you must meet to be classified mangment exempt.

    interviewing, selecting, and training employees;

    setting rates of pay and hours of work;

    maintaining production or sales records (beyond the merely clerical);

    appraising productivity; handling employee grievances or complaints, or disciplining employees;

    determining work techniques;

    planning the work;

    apportioning work among employees;

    determining the types of equipment to be used in performing work, or materials needed;

    planning budgets for work;

    monitoring work for legal or regulatory compliance;

    providing for safety and security of the workplace.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "... a significant driver of CSC’s profits and success..."

    There's two words you don't normally see in the same sentence as CSC.

    1. wallaby

      Re: "... a significant driver of CSC’s profits and success..."

      Agreed,

      when California State Circus took us over at British Aerospace it was plane (no pun intended) to see what direction things were headed in, best thing I ever did was jumping ship there.

      1. whileI'mhere

        Re: "... a significant driver of CSC’s profits and success..."

        If 'no pun intended' then the correct spelling is 'plain'.

  10. sloshnmosh

    the three-year legal battle..

    That right there...

    Ugh

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: the three-year legal battle..

      the lawyers got paid their overtime, so what's the problem?

      1. kain preacher

        Re: the three-year legal battle..

        lawyers are except from over time pay :)

  11. This post has been deleted by its author

  12. M.Zaccone

    Overtime ? What's that?

    Sounds familiar from my time with HP. Unless the project was time and materials, you were only ever allowed to book your contracted hours.

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    still they play the same game

    Its getting beyond farcical now in DXC, so many management layers that add, er fuck all. then an inability ti see the humour they so obviously extoll. Telling us in one sentnece, "that quite frankly we have gotten rid of too many people!" followed the next day by a double round of CR then VR........

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: still they play the same game

      Under HPE, I answered to our account manager. Great bloke, really supportive, wanted to make sure that we performed well and got things done.

      Naturally, he had to go because there's no room for that sort of behaviour around these parts.

      In my final meeting with me, he said to me "Don't worry about me, I'll get another job. I feel sorry for the people like you who are left here, and have to try to make things work".

  14. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Christmas is cancelled at DXC

    The decorations in our reception area consist of a bit of tinsel draped over a fake tree (not actually a Christmas tree - just some sort of artificial shrub that happened to be there anyway).

    Christmas lunch in the canteen didn't happen this year. OK, it wasn't an outstanding lunch in previous years, but the fact that HP/HPE chucked a few quid towards the cost so that we could have a reasonable festive meal for less than the price of a Tesco sandwich was a nice gesture.

    The usual "get yourself away at lunchtime" message from those higher up hasn't arrived this Christmas. It was these little gestures that made you think that, despite the huge pile of evidence to the contrary, that there may have been a little shred of compassion and decency somewhere in the echelons of management.

    Interestingly, despite there being no orders for the people at the coalface to finish early, our canteen is closing at 11:30.

    I imagine many people will be following the canteen staff's lead and heading off early, regardless of whether an edict to go early has come from on high.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Christmas is cancelled at DXC

      I'd go now, just checked Messenger all my contacts have logged off, so am I, merry Christmas.

  15. unwarranted triumphalism

    Wrong decision

    They're either 'professionals' and therefore exempt, or they're non-exempt, meaning they should have been paid less.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Wrong decision

      You are wrong about this - there are plenty of professionals who are classed as non-exempt in the US. Large portions of the tech workforce in IBM and Oracle (all of whom are required to have CS degrees, multiple years of experience, and are paid 6 figure salaries) are classified as non-exempt and are eligible for overtime.

      It's not as murky as it is in the UK - states like CT and CA have very clear requirements as to what defines each.

  16. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Pathetic company

    Glad I left the chaos of DXC 3 months ago. Still got contacts there, people leaving en masse and no sign of replacements. Morale is so low it doesn't actually exist amongst the workforce.

    I wonder who all the managers will manage once there's no one left?

    Bizarre situation to be in for the staff - if I were them I'd get out ASAP.

  17. Inachu

    To think managers have the audacity to still do this is beyond words.....

    They themselves should be reduced in pay for being idiots.

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