Financial giant Capital One has agreed to pay $20,000 to settle a lawsuit brought by a former learning associate who accused the company of misclassifying her as exempt from overtime pay, according to an order issued Monday by U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson.
The Virginia federal judge signed off on the settlement between Capital One Services LLC and plaintiff Anne Fierbaugh, officially bringing an end to the dispute with a dismissal with prejudice, meaning the case cannot be refiled.
Former Employee Claimed Misclassification Under Federal and State Law
Fierbaugh’s lawsuit, filed in December 2024, alleged that Capital One violated both the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Virginia Overtime Wage Act by wrongly classifying her and others in similar roles as overtime-exempt employees.
She contended that the duties of learning associates were comparable to those of teacher’s aides, asserting that they primarily provided administrative and instructional support rather than performing independent or managerial tasks that would justify an overtime exemption.
Her complaint argued that this classification allowed Capital One to avoid paying proper overtime wages despite employees regularly working beyond standard hours.
