JPMorgan and former brokers reach $5.7 million settlement to end overtime pay dispute

A $5.7 million settlement has been reached in a five-year class-action battle between JPMorgan Chase & Co. and 1,056 former financial advisers about overtime pay. The deal, which was presented to a federal district court in New York last week, covers state and federal claims from workers who say they were denied overtime, had unauthorized deductions taken from their wages and were improperly required to pay for expenses in violation of state laws. It covers financial and private-client advisers in New York and New Jersey, as well as private-client and independent private-client advisers in California, according to law360.com. "By reaching a settlement prior to trial, plaintiffs will avoid further expense and delay in obtaining a recovery for the class," the motion said. The long road to the deal was due in part to contention over which arbitration rules were to be followed. Last week, Judge Laura Taylor Swain granted JPMorgan's bid to compel arbitration for workers who had signed a version of Chase's arbitration agreement governed by the rules of the American Arbitration Association, but also kept the claims of plaintiffs who signed a version governed by rules of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc.