Supreme Court lets stand $36 million Family Dollar ruling

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Family Dollar Stores Inc said on Monday that the U.S. Supreme Court has decided not to hear its appeal of a $35.6 million verdict finding in favor of store managers who said they were denied overtime pay.

The suit alleged that Family Dollar violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by classifying the plaintiffs and other store managers as exempt employees who were not entitled to overtime compensation, according to Family Dollar's latest quarterly filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Family Dollar has said it believed the store managers were exempt employees and that they were properly compensated.

A Tuscaloosa, Alabama, jury found in 2006 that Family Dollar should have classified the plaintiffs as hourly employees entitled to overtime pay, and the trial court entered a judgment for $35.6 million. Family Dollar appealed the ruling.

In its regulatory filing, Family Dollar said that as of May 30, it had accrued liabilities of approximately $51.2 million related to the suit. The retailer said on Monday that the court's decision not to hear the case will not have a material impact on its financial condition.

The suit was originally filed by Janice Morgan and Barbara Richardson on January 30, 2001.

Family Dollar shares were up 19 cents, or 0.7 percent, at $26.82 in early afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Nicole Maestri, editing by Matthew Lewis)