Are liquidated damages discretionary in a retaliation case under the FLSA?

On Feb. 13, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in Moore et al v. Appliance Direct Inc., and Sei Pak asked this question: "Does the FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act) mandate the imposition of liquidated damages after a finding of liability for retaliation, unless excused by proof of reasonable good faith of the employer, the same as it does after a finding of liability for unpaid minimum wages and overtime, or are liquidated damages discretionary in a retaliation case?" And the answer is: it is discretionary, in accordance with the 6th and 8th U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals.

Here, the trial court held that it would not effectuate the purposes of the FLSA (the standard a trial court must look to in deciding whether to impose liquidated damages) which operates to double the plaintiff’s award of back pay. So, the jury's award of $30,000 for each of the three plaintiffs was left as is, no doubling. So, a cool $90,000 was saved.