Third Circuit Holds Administrative Exemption Under FLSA Applicable to Pharmaceutical Sales Representatives

Smith v. Johnson & Johnson, Nos. 09-1223 and 09-1292 (3d Cir., February 2, 2010) – The Third Circuit Court of Appeals has held that a former pharmaceutical sales representative for Johnson & Johnson was exempt from overtime entitlements under the administrative exemption of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In reaching its determination, the court focused on the plaintiff’s own testimony, which described the independent and managerial qualities of her position (e.g., the order and number of visits made to doctors was left to her discretion), and her testimony that 95 percent of the time she was unsupervised. The court did not address whether the outside sales exemption was applicable in this case.