1 TCEs are responsible for reviewing STD and LOA claims submitted by employees of their assigned customers. 1 Case 7:21-cv-01463-VB Document 72 Filed 12/14/22 of 16 Plaintiff worked as a Telephonic Claims Examiner (“TCE”) in defendant’s Hawthorne, New York, office from November 2010 to November 2020. Defendant does not issue insurance policies or fund insurance policies rather, it reviews claims submitted by its customers’ employees to determine whether such claims should be approved under the customers’ insurance plans. Defendant is a third-party administrator that processes short-term disability (“STD”) and leave of absence (“LOA”) claims on behalf of companies that provide disability benefits and paid or unpaid leave to their employees.

BACKGROUND The parties have submitted briefs and declarations with supporting exhibits, which reflect the following factual background. The Court has subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. For the following reasons, the motion is GRANTED. Now pending is plaintiff’s motion for class certification on her NYLL claims and for appointment of class counsel. Plaintiff also brings an individual claim alleging defendant misclassified her as exempt from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. : -x OPINION AND ORDER 21 CV 1463 (VB) Briccetti, J.: Plaintiff Erica Heckle brings this purported class action against defendant Matrix Absence Management, Inc., claiming defendant misclassified her and other “telephonic claims examiners” as exempt from overtime requirements under the New York Labor Law (“NYLL”) and failed to provide proper wage statements in violation of NYLL Section 196. : : MATRIX ABSENCE MANAGEMENT, INC., : Defendant. 72 Case 7:21-cv-01463-VB Document 72 Filed 12/14/22 of 16 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK -x ERICA HECKLE, : Plaintiff, : : v.

Matrix absence management hours