Judge Throws Out a Part of Lawsuit Against Nordstrom

A judge has dismissed part of a Washington state lawsuit against fashion retailer Nordstrom Inc. but left intact the state’s effort to collect back wages for employees who claim that they were coerced into working unpaid overtime.

Acting on a motion by Nordstrom to dismiss the department’s lawsuit, King County Superior Court Judge Susan Agid on Thursday ruled that the state couldn’t collect damages or constrain the way Nordstrom pays its employees in the future.

But Agid upheld the department’s efforts to collect back pay for perhaps hundreds of Nordstrom employees in Washington state that Labor and Industries contends were coerced to work without pay.

The Washington Department of Labor and Industries in February found that Nordstrom had violated state labor laws by failing to pay some employees for such things as attending company meetings, writing customer thank-you notes and making deliveries.

Nordstrom admitted that there were some errors in tracking employee time and established a $15-million reserve to pay workers.

But the company denied deliberate violations of wage and hour laws. It sued Labor and Industries, contending that the department’s findings denied them due process.

The state countersued in April and asked that Nordstrom be forced to pay damages double the amount of money owed workers. That amount has not been determined. State attorneys indicated that they may appeal.

Separately, the retailer reported Friday that its earnings declined 7% despite an 11% increase in sales during the third quarter.

The company said profit for the quarter ended Oct. 31 amounted to $20.4 million on $634.9 million in sales, compared to $22 million on $572.4 million in sales for the same period last year.