A recent legal filing details allegations that a landscaping supply company failed to pay overtime, misclassified a worker’s employment status, and engaged in discriminatory practices based on race. The complaint was submitted by Richard Dolliver in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan on March 13, 2026, naming Detroit Mulch LLC and its founder Casey Oberg as defendants.
According to the court documents, Dolliver claims he was hired by Detroit Mulch LLC around August 1, 2024 to work as a loader operator handling heavy landscaping equipment. He alleges that despite performing full-time duties similar to other employees at the company, he was classified as an independent contractor rather than an employee. The complaint states that this classification resulted in him receiving a Form 1099 for tax purposes instead of a W2 form typically provided to employees.
Dolliver reports that his biweekly pay statements did not include payroll tax withholdings or accruals for benefits such as paid time off. Instead, they listed only hours worked multiplied by his hourly wage. Over approximately two-thirds of his weeks at Detroit Mulch LLC, Dolliver says he worked more than 40 hours per week but was never paid overtime at the required rate of one-and-a-half times his regular wage. The filing estimates that Dolliver is owed over $3,000 in unpaid overtime for more than 275 hours worked beyond the standard 40-hour workweek.
The complaint further alleges that most workers at Detroit Mulch were classified as W2 employees with access to workplace benefits like insurance and paid leave. Dolliver asserts that he and another older Black man were the only Black men working at the company and neither received these benefits or proper employee classification. “Defendants failed to classify him properly, failed to pay him lawfully, failed to honor his entitlement to overtime pay, and failed to provide him with essential benefits such as insurance,” according to the filing.
The document also describes an incident on or about October 15, 2025 when Dolliver suffered a workplace injury while replacing parts on machinery. He claims that after passing out from the injury and being taken by ambulance to a hospital, management told him they would not complete worker’s compensation paperwork but would cover his medical bills instead. However, Dolliver alleges these bills were never paid by Detroit Mulch LLC or Oberg.
After recovering from his injury within a week—per recommendations from medical providers—Dolliver says he contacted management ready to return to work but was informed that his employment was terminated because he was considered a “liability.” The complaint states: “Defendants advised him that they were terminating his employment because he had been injured on the job.” It further alleges that non-Black employees who suffered workplace injuries were covered by worker’s compensation insurance and provided with additional benefits.
Based on these events, Dolliver brings several legal claims against Detroit Mulch LLC and Casey Oberg: misclassification under the Fair Labor Standards Act; violation of civil rights under federal law (42 U.S.C. § 1981); retaliation under Michigan’s worker’s compensation statute; and violation of Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act prohibiting race-based discrimination in employment terms.
The plaintiff seeks multiple forms of relief from the court including payment for all unpaid overtime compensation plus liquidated damages equal to those amounts; back pay for lost wages since termination; front pay if reinstatement is not possible; reimbursement for medical expenses related to his injury; compensatory damages for emotional distress and loss of benefits; punitive damages due to alleged willful violations; reinstatement to his former position or an equivalent role; attorney’s fees; expert costs; and any other relief deemed appropriate by the court.
Attorney Robin B. Wagner of Robin Wagner Law PLLC represents Richard Dolliver in this matter. The case is identified as Case No. 2:26-cv-10846-SKD-DRG.
Source: 226cv10846_Richard_Dolliver_v_Detroit_Mulch_Complaint_Eastern_District_Of_Michigan.pdf
