Roughly 6,000 New York City police officers were forced to pay millions of dollars in back pay over articles in The New York Times, Target and elsewhere, according to a new class action lawsuit.
Probably hundreds of police officers were trying to make a little extra money by taking advantage of the New York City Police Department's pay system, which allows police officers to take on off-duty security work while in uniform. He is suing a company that either failed to pay him $10,000 in wages or paid him months after his job ended. .
“If you do your job and work hard, you'll get paid,” Mohamed Monassar, an NYPD sergeant involved in the case, told the Post.
“It makes me feel terrible,” Monassar said.
Monasar said both Target and the New York Times owe him paid detail shifts, and some of Target's debt dates back to 2023.
Monassar said the woman in gray has only owed one shift of money since last year, but it is well known in the pay statement community that she is notoriously slow to pay for her record sheets, and police are not paying for the services requested. It is said that it will take 4 to 6 months after collection. .
“The safety and security of our employees is our top priority,” said New York Times spokeswoman Daniel Rose Ha. “We rely on the NYPD and its officers to strengthen our security programs, and we appreciate their work. We just received this complaint and are reviewing it.”
NYPD Lt. Gabriel Walls, one of the plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit, alleges that Target stores in Brooklyn owe her 121 hours of paid detail work, or $10,500.
At least 100 police officers handled paychecks at the Times and 1,000 at various Target stores, according to court documents.
Other stores named in Wednesday's lawsuit, including Primark, are expected to be added to the class action soon.
The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Manhattan Supreme Court, also names the New York City Police Department as a defendant. That's because the NYPD administers the paid detail program and is responsible for enforcing the city's contract to participate in Business Inc. They allegedly failed to uphold this responsibility.
“These companies rely on police officers to provide protection and safety, yet they refuse to compensate them for their services,” attorney John Scola told the Post. “In effect, these multibillion-dollar companies are exploiting the very executives they employ, effectively stealing their employees' labor by failing to pay them back.”
“As for the paid details, they're supposed to enforce it. They're making money off of it,” added Monasar, who makes $105,000 a year without overtime.
In addition to wages for paid details, companies are also charged a 10% “administration fee” per hour based on rates set by police officers for each rank, which is $4.10 per hour for 1 Police Plaza scratch. You will earn $8.70 from this.
“If you don't verify your payment details, your account will be suspended and you won't be able to work,” Monassar said. “There is no penalty for vendors to make these mistakes.”
And when Monassar went looking for the missing wages, he says officials told him to take it or leave it alone.
“Whenever I complain about it, they always say, 'This is a voluntary program. If you don't want to participate, you don't have to participate,'” he said.
But his options are limited since his paycheck has increased since he became a sergeant, and more reliable providers such as banks and hospitals typically choose lower-ranking officers at more affordable prices.
“Right now I can spend time with my family,” Monassar said. “I work eight hours a day on my days off, so I think I'll get paid.''
This is not the first time that payment statements have been the subject of a class action lawsuit. In 2023, TD Bank settled the lawsuit. 5,000 members file class action lawsuit over $8.7 million payment details.
Target and the NYPD did not respond to requests for comment.
