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VOL. 32 ISSUE 10 OCTOBER 2014
Napa Body Shops Get Jolted After 6.0 Quake
The Newest Shop in Utah Opens November 1
In most parts of the country, snow, tornadoes, floods and other severe weather can lead to an unexpected windfall for body shops. But most of California isn’t usually affected by dramatic seasonal weather. However, when an earthquake hits, like the one that shook Napa, CA, on August 24 at 3:20 a.m. and measuring at a 6.0 on the Richter scale, everyone, including body shops, are impacted. The quake’s epicenter was located approximately 3.7 miles northwest of American Canyon near the West Napa Fault beneath the Napa Valley Marina, just west of the Napa County Airport. The earthquake was the largest to hit the San Francisco Bay Area since
After nearly a year building their new state-of-the-art facility in Southern Utah, Red Rock Collision Repair & Auto Painting is expected to open on November 1, 2014. “We’re planning to be a one-stop shop for everything,” said Josh Borrowman, the general manager of the company. The 16,000 square foot collision repair and painting facility will be located at 765 N. Red Rock Road in St. George, UT. In addition, they are opening a 6,000 square foot mechanical shop on site as well as Red Rock Towing. Since founding Red Rock Collision Repair & Auto Painting in January, the company has operated out of a temporary location in St. George at 1275 E. Red Hills Pkwy.
by Ed Attanasio
See Jolt in Business, Page 14
Most cars damaged by the Napa Earthquake needed just cosmetic work, but obviously some vehicle required much more. (Photo courtesy of Michael Smith)
Federal Court in FL to Rule on Overtime Pay Under FLSA for Auto Repair Employees
See Overtime Pay, Page 10
P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018
A federal court case involving overtime payment for employees under the rules of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) was filed in State Court February, 2014, and removed to the Federal Florida Southern District Court in July. The court’s ruling in Smoluk v. Action Auto Body, LLC, has the potential to clarify confusing and contradictory positions from the Department of Labor and rulings by
courts with regard to exempt status for employees in automotive repair. The plaintiffs, Jospeh Smoluk and Michelle Smoluk, are suing their former employer, Franck Tatto and Action Auto Body, LLC., for damages exceeding $15,000, excluding attorneys’ fees or costs for breach of agreement and unpaid wages under the FLSA. Franck Tatto and Action Auto Body, LLC., located in Broward
Change Service Requested
by Stacey Phillips, Assistant Editor
by Stacey Phillips, Assistant Editor
Mike Keetch, the owner of the company, managed MAACO Collision Repair & Auto Painting in St. George for the last 10 years prior to starting Red Rock. Keetch has also owned an auto dealership, Approved Auto Sales, in the area for the last four years. With 25 years of experience in the auto body and paint industry, Keetch opened his new company with two distinct departments to differentiate between the types of services provided. The collision repair center offers factory-to-match collision repair using industry best practice repair methods, OEM parts and experienced technicians, who will all be I-CAR certified. Borrowman, who worked with Keetch for the last 10 years, said they See Newest Shop in UT, Page 8
Six Holmes Body Shop Locations Acquired by Cooks Collision Centers, All but Original Shop in Pasadena Cooks Collision Centers, based in Rosedale, CA, has acquired six collision repair locations from Holmes Body Shop. Holmes will continue to own and operate the original Holmes Body Shop location in Pasadena, CA. The transaction is Cooks Collision’s first MSO acquisition in the Southern California market. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The Holmes Body Shop locations solidifies Cooks’ position as the largest independently owned and operated collision repair organization in California, with 25 locations throughout the state. The Holmes collision repair centers are located in Alhambra, Canoga Park, Duarte, El Segundo, Riverside and Westlake Village, CA. “We are very excited about Cooks Collision assuming ownership of our six locations,” said Tom Holmes, owner and CEO of Holmes Body Shop. “Since 1972, our team has focused on delivering outstanding customer service and quality collision repairs to our
customers. We made our final decision to join the Cooks team based on the honesty and integrity of the entire
The original Holmes Body Shop location in Pasadena, CA, from which it grew into an MSO with seven collision repair centers throughout the Los Angeles area. This location will continue to be owned and operated by Tom Holmes
Wood family and Cooks employees that we met and dealt with. Our team is excited to join the Cooks Collision organization.” Cooks Collision said Holmes will continue to own and operate the Holmes Body Shop location in Pasadena, CA. See Holmes Body Shop, Page 8
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