More Groupon Employees Sue Over Unpaid Overtime

Groupon was hit with a second employee lawsuit alleging that the company failed to pay overtime. It’s only the latest in a series of major setbacks for the social coupon site casting its future into doubt.

PaidContent reports the class action lawsuit asserts that the employees who were “deal-vetters,” who reviewed the contracts with merchants, routinely worked over 40 hours a week and were not paid overtime. That could be a violation of Federal employment law.

That lawsuit is on top of the one filed in August that would cover over 1,000 Groupon salespeople. They also seek overtime pay.

Recently the company’s COO and sales chief left. Its IPO was put on hold because the company used an accounting method to determine its income called “CSOI,” or “consolidated segment operating income.” This method is not used by any other firm. It just happened to exclude its two biggest costs, the costs of marketing and getting customers. Between that, these lawsuits, the firm raising $950 million and paying out $810 million of it in bonuses to it’s top dogs, you have to wonder how much longer they can keep it up.

I never got into Groupon myself. I’ve been around people who were using Groupons and even benefited from some of their free food and whatnot, but I’ve never bought a Groupon. I prefer to go to places that I like or sound good based on my taste, and not pick because there’s a deal to get me there.

Groupon Hit With New Lawsuit [PaidContent]

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