An $8.5 million agreement now stands at the center of a wage dispute between FedEx Ground Package System Inc. and thousands of warehouse workers across New Jersey, closing a chapter in litigation that challenged how time on the clock was measured — and who got paid for it.

The proposed FedEx $8.5M Wage Suit deal would resolve claims that hourly employees were not compensated for minutes spent passing through security screenings and walking to time clocks before and after their shifts — time workers argued was integral to the job, not incidental.

Nearly 98,000 Workers Included in Proposed Class

William Taggart, an hourly employee at one of the company’s Garden State facilities, asked the court Wednesday to approve the settlement, calling it “a fair and reasonable result given the risks and delays of continued litigation.”

The proposed settlement class spans all hourly or nonexempt workers at FedEx’s New Jersey facilities who clocked in and out between June 24, 2019, and Oct. 31, 2025.

According to court filings, the class could include about 97,795 individuals employed at package handling centers in Avenel, Barrington, Camden, Carteret, Dover, East Brunswick, Edison, Linden, Metuchen, Moonachie, Newark, Princeton, Robbinsville, Secaucus, South Brunswick, Wayne and Woodbridge.

If approved, approximately $5.3 million of the settlement fund will be distributed to participating class members. None of that money will revert to FedEx.

Breakdown of the $8.5 Million Fund

From the total settlement:

• $2.8 million would go toward attorney fees.

• $87,500 is earmarked for litigation costs.

• Taggart would receive a $15,000 service award as the named plaintiff.

• An estimated $279,000 would cover settlement administration expenses.

Taggart’s counsel, who say they have litigated similar wage cases nationwide for decades, described the outcome as reasonable given the uncertainty of trial and the potential for prolonged appeals.

The deal was reached last June following a day of mediation, according to the court brief.

Allegations Centered on “Off-the-Clock” Time

Taggart filed suit in July 2023, alleging that FedEx violated New Jersey wage and hour laws by failing to pay workers for time spent waiting for and undergoing mandatory security screenings, walking to and from those checkpoints, and waiting to clock in and out.

The lawsuit framed the issue as a matter of principle: when does the workday truly begin? At the conveyor belt — or at the security gate?

FedEx, for its part, maintains it did nothing unlawful.

“FedEx is committed to complying with all wage and hour laws applying to our operations,” spokesperson Heather Wilson said Thursday. “While we continue to deny any wrongdoing or violation of the law with respect to the allegations in this lawsuit, we have reached an agreement to resolve this case.”

A representative for Taggart did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Legal Teams

Taggart is represented by Krysten Leigh Connon of Lichten & Liss-Riordan PC, Mark Justin Gottesfeld of Winebrake & Santillo and Patricia Mulvoy Kipnis of Bailey & Glasser LLP.

FedEx is represented by in-house counsel David James Kiefer and by Alba V. Aviles and Kathleen McLeod Caminiti of Fisher Phillips.

If the court grants approval, the FedEx $8.5M Wage Suit deal will close a dispute that put a spotlight on the small slices of time that, multiplied across nearly 98,000 workers and years of shifts, added up to millions.