Duane Reade has agreed to pay $7.2 million to resolve claims from more than 2,000 New York Police Department officers who say the pharmacy chain shorted them for security work performed while off duty — a dispute that has simmered for years and now reaches its final act.

Court Signs Off on Multi-Million Dollar Deal

U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter Jr. granted final approval Friday in Manhattan federal court, calling the settlement under the Fair Labor Standards Act and New York Labor Law both “fair” and “reasonable.”

The agreement slices the payout into key portions: $85,000 in service awards, roughly $2.4 million in attorney fees, and $100,000 in litigation expenses.

Officers Say They Weren’t Paid for Extra Work

The settlement covers NYPD officers, detectives, sergeants, and lieutenants who took security shifts at Duane Reade stores statewide through the department’s Paid Detail Program between July 3, 2014, and May 15 of this year.

The Paid Detail Program allows New York City businesses to hire off-duty officers for added security — a system that, according to the lawsuit, became a breeding ground for delayed or missing payments.

NYPD officer Burbran Pierre ignited the legal clash in July 2020, accusing the city, the department, and several major program participants — including Duane Reade, Bloomberg LP, and TD Bank — of failing to pay officers on time, or at all, for hours already worked.

Settlement Applies Only to Duane Reade

Friday’s approval solely applies to Duane Reade, carving the pharmacy chain out of a broader wage-and-hour battle that continues to shadow other defendants.

For the thousands of officers involved, the settlement marks a long-awaited close to a dispute over pay that many said stretched weeks or months beyond their shifts — a delay that, in the words of one filing, “undermined both morale and trust” in the program meant to support them.

The case now moves forward against the remaining parties.