Nigg v. United States Postal Serv., 555 F.3d 781 (2009)

Robert Nigg, a postal inspector currently employed by the United States Postal Service (“USPS”), and Keith Lewis, a retired postal inspector, sued the USPS alleging postal inspectors are entitled to overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The district court granted summary judgment to the USPS after concluding that another federal statute (39 U.S.C. § 1003(c)) governs the pay of postal inspectors. The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed the judgment, holding that the FLSA and § 1003(c) are not in “irreconcilable conflict” and ordering the district court to further analyze the two statutes. The Ninth Circuit also ordered the district court to determine on remand whether postal inspectors are administratively exempt from the requirements of the FLSA. Cf. Moore-Thomas v. Alaska Airlines, Inc., 553 F.3d 1241 (9th Cir. 2009) (Railway Labor Act did not completely preempt Oregon state-law claims for failure to pay all wages due to customer service agent and other members of the class).