New York City’s Board of Elections has agreed to a $250,000 settlement with some 70 poll workers who sued saying the board failed to properly pay them for overtime hours, lawyers for the poll workers say.

In a September 4 press release, the law office of Justin A. Zeller, P.C. says the Board of Elections has not admitted any wrongdoing “but agreed to the $250,000 settlement to avoid the costs and burdens of further litigation.”

The settlement funds will be distributed among the poll workers who participated in the collective action, the law office said.

According to the complaint filed with the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in 2023, the board employed poll workers for preliminary and post-election tasks, including answering voter inquiries, processing absentee ballots, maintaining ballot records, and performing clerical functions.

The complaint says the individuals worked between 45 and 60 hours per week at a rate of $22 per hour but were not paid time-and-a-half for hours worked beyond 40 in a week, in violation of federal labor law. The suit covered work performed since 2020.

“I am very pleased that my client and those workers who joined the case will finally receive the wages they are owed,” lawyer Justin Zeller told the New York Sun.

“All aspects of our election process should be handled with honesty and care, including properly compensating those who run the elections. Unfortunately, only twenty percent of poll workers joined the case and will receive compensation. I encourage all other poll workers to assert their rights before it is too late.”

The law firm says the Board of Elections identified approximately 360 poll workers who were affected by the board’s overtime pay practices, but that only about 70 opted into the lawsuit. The settlement will be distributed among those individuals.