Legal Update - FLSA - Instructor Exemption

A federal court recently ruled that firearms instructors at the Federal Law Enforcement Training
Center were not exempt from the overtime standards as teachers.  Astor v. U.S., 2007 WL
4023376 (Fed. Cl. Nov. 13, 2007).   

Under the FLSA “teachers” at an “educational establishment” are considered professionals and
are not entitled to overtime. Surprisingly, the Federal Government had classified firearms instructors
at FLETC as “teachers” and failed to pay them overtime.  The Court explained that in order to be
exempt as teachers, two requirements must be met:  “If the firearms instructors are deemed
"teachers," and if FLETC is deemed an "educational establishment," then Plaintiffs are exempt
from the overtime provisions of the FLSA, and they cannot recover. If Plaintiffs do not fall under
these exemption requirements, then they are entitled to overtime pay.” (emphasis added)

The Court then held that the Government had failed to meet either requirement.  The Court found the
instructors were not “teachers” as “the primary duty of the FLETC firearms instructors is to train law
enforcement officers to use firearms properly, safely, and proficiently. Thus, Plaintiffs fall within the
category of nonexempt teachers, whose paramount knowledge is the knowledge of the ability to
perform a trade, craft, or laboring occupation, such as firearms use.”

More importantly for police departments, the Court found that FLETC was not an “educational
establishment.”  The Court explained, “FLETC does not issue any degree, license, certification,
or educational credits to its "students" nor does FLETC require its "teachers" to possess any of
the credentials normally required of academic teachers.”  The Court also rejected the government’s
argument that it had met the requirement that it be accredited as a career school:  FLETC’s “recent
accreditation as a law enforcement training center is not a sufficient substitute for the accreditation
of "a nationally recognized accrediting organization for career schools."” Therefore, because the
instructors were not teaching at an “educational establishment” they could not be considered exempt
teachers.

This decision should serve as a wake up call for any departments that exempt academy or training
instructors from the overtime provisions of the FLSA.  If anything, the standards for instructors and
instruction may be higher at FLETC than at many academies or training centers.  Therefore locals
should closely examine any instance in which instructors are not paid overtime because they are
classified as “teachers.”  (Of course instructors may be exempt for other reasons, such as if they
are managers who are exempt because of their management duties.)

The IUPA can assist any local that suspects improper exemptions in its department.