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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF MARYLAND SOUTHERN DIVISION

BELAD LIKU DIANA ESSAME et al., Plaintiffs, v. SSC LAUREL OPERATING COMPANY LLC, Defendant. Civil Action No. 8:10-cv-03519-AW

MEMORANDUM OPINION Plaintiff Belad Liku Diana Essame, on behalf of herself and others similarly situated, brings this action against Defendant SSC Laurel Operating Company LLC d/b/a Patuxent River Health and Rehabilitation Center. Plaintiff asserts claims for violations of the FLSA, the Maryland Wage and Hour Law (MWHL), the Maryland Wage Payment and Collection Law (MWPCL), as well as for unjust enrichment. Before the Court is Plaintiff's Motion for Conditional Class Certification. The Parties have fully briefed the matter and the Court deems no hearing necessary. For the reasons that follow, the Court GRANTS Plaintiff's Motion for Conditional Class Certification. I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND The instant dispute arises out of an employment relationship between Plaintiffs and Defendant. Lead Plaintiff Belad Liku Diana Essame (Essame) was hired by Defendant SSC Laurel Operating Company LLC1 on March 16, 2010 for an LPN position. On December 16,

SSC Laurel Operating Company LLC does business as Patuxent River Health and Rehabilitation Center. The Court hereinafter refers to SSC Laurel as "Patuxent."

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2010, Essame filed a Class/Collective Action Complaint (Complaint). Doc. No. 1. The crux of the Complaint is that Patuxent failed to pay Essame and other nurses it compensated on an hourly basis for work they performed (1) during and/or through their unpaid thirty-minute meal break and/or (2) after the conclusion of their shift. Essame also filed a declaration in which she repeats her allegation that Patuxent required her to work through meal breaks and after the conclusion of her shift and estimates that she worked seven unpaid hours each week. Doc. No. 4. Four Opt-In Plaintiffs have filed declarations seeking to opt in to Essame's Complaint. Doc. Nos. 2, 3, 20

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Maryland Law