NYC Mover Forced To Work 24 Hour Shifts With No Breaks: Suit

NEW YORK CITY — A New York City mover says he was fired for requesting recuperation time after a 24-hour shift left him so dehydrated his kidneys failed, a new lawsuit contends.

Seron Douglas filed suit Thursday against Queens moving companies East Coast Moving and Extreme Van Lines — both located at 107-27 180th St. — for unpaid wages he earned doing work that eventually landed him in the hospital, Brooklyn federal court records show.

"Douglas was admitted to a hospital for kidney failure, as a result of dehydration, after working a grueling twenty-four (24) hour shift, without any breaks," the complaint states.

"[East Coast Moving] terminated Plaintiff Douglas’ employment, after being informed that he was hospitalized for kidney failure, and needed to take time off work to recover."

The suit says Douglas and co-plaintiff Gilbert Augustin were employed by both East Coast Moving and Extreme Van Lines, but representatives from both companies denied employing the two men or operating jointly.

"These gentlemen never worked for East Coast Moving," a representative wrote in an email. "[Extreme Van Lines] rents out part of our warehouse but has no affiliation with our company."

Extreme Van Line agent Edna Seltzer added the company she registered with the Department of State had never gone into business.

"It never operates," Seltzer said in an interview. "I don't know those two men."

But the suit claims Douglas and Augustin were employed by the two companies between May and August, during which time they worked up to 120 hours a week and were denied rest breaks during shifts that could last between 12 and 24 hours, according to the suit.

Douglas and Augustin were paid cash at $17 and $20 an hour respectively, but never received overtime pay for excess hours or records of work hours registered, the suit contends.

Customers of East Coast Moving have also raised concerns about the company's financial policies, submitting 19 Better Business Bureau complaints, 10 of which claim clients were quoted one price and charged thousands of dollars more.

East Coast Movers denied those claims to the bureau.