Securities firm Morgan Stanley has agreed to pay $42.5 million to settle a lawsuit by California brokers who demanded overtime pay. The suit, filed on behalf of some 5,000 current and former brokers and trainees in California, alleged that Morgan Stanley failed to pay them overtime. The suit, filed in federal court in San Diego, also alleged that the firm deducted money from paychecks to cover administrative expenses. New York-based Morgan Stanley, which currently has about 9,500 brokers, maintained that brokers should not be paid on an hourly basis. The settlement follows similar overtime suit victories by stockbrokers for UBS and Merrill Lynch.

Source: Reuters News Service