A paid North Carolina firefighter has filed suit against his fire department claiming that because the department is a private nonprofit corporation, it is not eligible to use the partial overtime exemption available to public-sector fire departments under Section 7(k) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (29 USC §207k).

Joseph Kenneth Prince filed suit Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina against the Etowah-Horseshoe Volunteer Fire & Rescue Department, Inc. Prince alleges the department improperly calculates his overtime using a 106-hour threshold over a 14-day period, rather than paying overtime for hours worked beyond 40 in a seven-day workweek.

According to the complaint, Prince has been employed by the department since June 2, 2024. He performs firefighting and engineer duties and responds to medical calls. The department classifies him as non-exempt under the FLSA and pays him $18.75 per hour.

Prince alleges the department pays him overtime pursuant to Section 7(k) of the FLSA, which allows qualifying public agencies to use an extended work period (up to 28 days) and extended maximum hours (up to 53 hours per week, 106 hours per 2 weeks and 212 hours for 4 weeks) for employees engaged in fire protection activities.

The complaint alleges the department cannot use Section 7(k) because it is not a “public agency” as defined by the FLSA. Prince claims the Etowah-Horseshoe Volunteer Fire & Rescue Department is a private nonprofit corporation whose board of directors and officers are selected independently of government decision-makers and that the department hires its employees directly and at its own discretion. On that basis, he contends the department must pay overtime under the FLSA’s standard 40-hour workweek requirement.

Prince works 24-hour shifts. As an example of the alleged underpayment, the complaint points to the pay period from February 22 through March 7, 2025, during which Prince worked 112 hours. The department paid him six hours of overtime, representing the hours exceeding its 106-hour threshold. Prince contends he should instead have received overtime for all hours exceeding 40 during each of the two seven-day workweeks.

The complaint identifies another 112-hour pay period, from October 18 through October 31, 2025, in which Prince was again paid six hours of overtime. He alleges these examples are representative of the department’s ongoing overtime practices.

Prince further alleges the violations were willful, claiming he brought the matter to department officials and was told the department was “properly” paying overtime under the FLSA. He contends the department knew he routinely worked more than 40 hours per week because it scheduled him to do so.

The suit asserts a single count for failure to pay overtime under the FLSA. Prince seeks unpaid overtime compensation, liquidated damages, attorneys’ fees and costs. He is also seeking a finding that the department’s violations were willful, which would permit recovery for the three-year period preceding the filing of the lawsuit.

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