A New York City man who was Donald Trump’s personal driver for more than a quarter century is suing the president’s family business for back pay, saying he was stiffed for thousands of hours of overtime.
In a lawsuit filed Monday in Manhattan, Noel Cintron claimed Trump ‘exploited and denied significant wages to his own longstanding personal driver’ by paying him a fixed salary for working between 50 and 55 hours per week.
Cintron, whose Facebook profile said he was originally from Puerto Rico – before it was deactivated Monday – blamed Trump for ‘an utterly callous display of unwarranted privilege and entitlement.’
Noel Cintron (right), pictured in 2015 with baseball legend Yogi Berra, is suing Donald Trump for overtime back-pay
Trump, according to Cintron’s lawsuit, required him to work between 50-55 hours per week as a salaried employee
The New York Daily News first reported on the lawsuit, which describes Cintron as ‘President Trump’s personal driver for more than 20 years until the Secret Service recently undertook that role.’
Attorney Larry Hutcher said in a statement that Trump ‘has proclaimed himself as a champion of working men and women, but nothing could be further from the truth.’
‘Noel Cintron worked for him days, nights, and weekends, but year after year Trump refused to pay him the wages he had earned. A complete disregard for the rights of workers has defined his disgraceful record in business.’
Cintron’s complaint also alleges that he worked holidays and vacation days without compensation, and was never given ‘accurate’ wage statements.
His salary was $62,700 in 2003 and $68,000 in 2006, according to the lawsuit, and his last raise, to $75,000 in 2010, came with a catch: The Trump Organization rescinded his health insurance benefits, as many employers did after Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law.
That move saved the president’s real estate company ‘approximately $17,866.08 per year in health insurance premiums,’ Cintron alleges.
Cintron, originally from Puerto Rico, blamed Trump for ‘an utterly callous display of unwarranted privilege and entitlement’
According to PayScale.com, the median chauffeur salary in New York City is $54,666. Including bonuses, some in the field earn as much as $91,134.
Cintron’s status as a salaried employee – one not paid by the hour – could jeopardize his attempt to collect overtime pay.
But he says that for a quarter century he worked 5-day weeks and often began at 7:00 a.m., ending his days ‘whenever Donald Trump, his family or business associates no longer required Plaintiff’s services.’
He is seeking back pay for 3,300 hours of work during the last six years, the longest stretch of time covered by New York’s statute of limitations.
A $75,000 salary corresponds to about $36.00 per hour, making his claim worth a maximum of nearly $186,000 if he should win.
But labor law in New York allows employers to pay overtime for some professions, including taxi drivers, based on time-and-a-half for the state minimum wage.
Under that standard, Cintron could recover only about half as much.
He is also seeking attorney’s fees, unspecified ‘punitive’ damages and $200 per week in penalties spelled out in New York and federal labor law.
The penalties could add up to another $62,400.
A spokesman for Hutcher did not immediately respond to a question about whether Cintron’s agreement to serve as a salaried employee rather than being paid by the hour could invalidate his claim.
A Trump Organization attorney also did not immediately respond.