ServiceMaster
Encyclopedia
ServiceMaster is a privately held Fortune 500
company that provides various services to residences and firms. Its headquarters are located in Memphis, Tennessee
after moving there from Downers Grove, Illinois
in early 2007. Brands operated by ServiceMaster include: TruGreen, Terminix
, American Home Shield, Furniture Medic, AmeriSpec, ServiceMaster Clean, and Merry Maids. ServiceMaster was founded by Marion E. Wade, a minor league baseball player, as a moth
-proofing company in Chicago, Illinois. It was incorporated in 1947 and expanded to franchised
carpet cleaning in 1952. Its movement into business services makes it a large outsourcing
company. The core services of the company include lawn care and landscape maintenance
, termite and pest control, home service contracts, disaster response and reconstruction, cleaning and disaster restoration, house cleaning, furniture repair, and home inspection.
ServiceMaster has more than 5,100 company-owned and franchise locations around the country. It has 27,000 corporate employees and a franchise network that independently employs over 31,000 additional people.
-oriented company. Representatives explain that the name ServiceMaster comes from a Christian concept called "service thy master".
The company asserts that their Christian leanings are evident in their first stated objective:
in 2004 for $2.4 billion, and the Hertz rental car business
, which it bought with two other firms for $15 billion in 2005.
[4] Pablo et al. v. ServiceMaster Global (Terminix), CASE NO. 3:08-cv-03894-SI(U.S. Dist. Ct. N. Dist. CA(filed May 31, 2008).
[5]Id.
[6] 29 U.S.C. 213(a)(1). See generally Allan J. Schwartz, Who is employed in "capacity of outside salesman" within the meaning of 13(a)(1) of Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C.A. 213(a)(1)), as amended.
[7] Pablo v.ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc., No. C 08-03894 SI, UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 64969,(N.D. Cal., June 20, 2011, supra.
[8] AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, No. 09-893, SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES, 131 S. Ct. 1740; 179 L. Ed. 2d 742; 2011 U.S. LEXIS 3367; 161 Lab. Cas. (CCH) P10,368; 22 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. S 957; 52 Comm. Reg. (P & F) 1179,(April 27, 2011).
[9] Pablo et al., supra.
[10] See Am. Pipe & Constr. Co. v. Utah, No. 72-1195, SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES, 414 U.S. 538; 94 S. Ct. 756; 38 L. Ed. 2d 713; 1974 U.S. LEXIS 42;(January 16, 1974).
Fortune 500
The Fortune 500 is an annual list compiled and published by Fortune magazine that ranks the top 500 U.S. closely held and public corporations as ranked by their gross revenue after adjustments made by Fortune to exclude the impact of excise taxes companies collect. The list includes publicly and...
company that provides various services to residences and firms. Its headquarters are located in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
after moving there from Downers Grove, Illinois
Downers Grove, Illinois
Downers Grove is a village in Downers Grove and Lisle Townships, DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 48,724 at the 2000 census, with an official estimated population of 49,250 in 2008.-History:...
in early 2007. Brands operated by ServiceMaster include: TruGreen, Terminix
Terminix
Terminix International Company, L.P. is the largest pest control company in the world, operating in 45 states in the United States and 14 countries around the world. It is a unit of ServiceMaster.-History:...
, American Home Shield, Furniture Medic, AmeriSpec, ServiceMaster Clean, and Merry Maids. ServiceMaster was founded by Marion E. Wade, a minor league baseball player, as a moth
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
-proofing company in Chicago, Illinois. It was incorporated in 1947 and expanded to franchised
Franchising
Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....
carpet cleaning in 1952. Its movement into business services makes it a large outsourcing
Outsourcing
Outsourcing is the process of contracting a business function to someone else.-Overview:The term outsourcing is used inconsistently but usually involves the contracting out of a business function - commonly one previously performed in-house - to an external provider...
company. The core services of the company include lawn care and landscape maintenance
Landscape maintenance
Landscape maintenance is the art and vocation of keeping a landscape healthy, clean, safe and attractive, typically in a garden, yard, park, Institutional setting or estate...
, termite and pest control, home service contracts, disaster response and reconstruction, cleaning and disaster restoration, house cleaning, furniture repair, and home inspection.
ServiceMaster has more than 5,100 company-owned and franchise locations around the country. It has 27,000 corporate employees and a franchise network that independently employs over 31,000 additional people.
Religion
ServiceMaster strives to be perceived as a ChristianChristian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
-oriented company. Representatives explain that the name ServiceMaster comes from a Christian concept called "service thy master".
The company asserts that their Christian leanings are evident in their first stated objective:
- "Honor God in All We Do"
Current ServiceMaster Brands
- ServiceMaster Clean - established 1952 - Disaster Restoration, Janitorial and Carpet Cleaning
- TruGreen - acquired 1990 - lawn care
- TerminixTerminixTerminix International Company, L.P. is the largest pest control company in the world, operating in 45 states in the United States and 14 countries around the world. It is a unit of ServiceMaster.-History:...
- founded 1927, acquired 1986 - pest control - American Home Shield - acquired 1989 - home warranty
- Furniture Medic - acquired 1996 - furniture repair
- AmeriSpecAmeriSpecAmeriSpec, Inc is the largest home inspection company in North America, operating in 48 states in the United States and Canada. It is a subsidiary of ServiceMaster.-History:...
- acquired 1996 - home inspection - Merry Maids - acquired 1988 - maid services
Buyout
In March 2007, ServiceMaster accepted a $5.5 billion buyout offer from the New York-based private-equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice. CD&R is a nearly 30-year-old, private equity firm with a history of buying and selling companies. Its purchases have included Kinko's, which it sold to FedExFedEx
FedEx Corporation , originally known as FDX Corporation, is a logistics services company, based in the United States with headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee...
in 2004 for $2.4 billion, and the Hertz rental car business
The Hertz Corporation
Hertz Global Holdings Inc is an American car rental company with international locations in 145 countries worldwide.-Early years:The company was founded by Walter L. Jacobs in 1918, who started a car rental operation in Chicago with a dozen Model T Ford cars. In 1923, Jacobs sold it to John D...
, which it bought with two other firms for $15 billion in 2005.
American Home Shield Lawsuit and Settlement
On July 24, 2007 a lawsuit was filed against American Home Shield allegeing that "American Home Shield engaged in a pattern and practice of failing to fulfill its contractual obligation to its customers". In February 2008 American Home Shield announced a proposed settlement.http://www.homewarrantyreviews.com/ahs-class-action-lawsuit-settlementTermite Inspectors' Lawsuit Seeking Overtime Pay
On May 31, 2008, Termite inspectors in California sued ServiceMaster and its Terminix Unit for failure to pay overtime, allow the opportunity for lunch and rest breaks,and for failure to reimburse vehicle and other work-required expenses.[4] The case challenged the company's classification of termite inspectors as "outside sales persons."[5] Federal and state labor laws exempt employers from the duty to pay overtime and minimum wages to "outside sales" employees.[6] The company characterized termite inspections as "sales activities" and contended its termite inspectors were, therefore, properly classified as sales persons.[6]. On June 20, 2011, the U.S. District Court held that termite inspections are not sales activities.[7] Although the case was filed as a class action, following the April 27, 2007 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that the Federal Arbitration Act bars class actions in arbitration,[8] the company asserted its arbitration rights and the class action was denied; individual claims allowed. [9] Denial of a class action lifts a stay of the statute of limitations and thereafter requires claimants to file within the applicable time limits or forfeit the right to sue for back pay.[10]Notes
[4] Pablo et al. v. ServiceMaster Global (Terminix), CASE NO. 3:08-cv-03894-SI(U.S. Dist. Ct. N. Dist. CA(filed May 31, 2008).
[5]Id.
[6] 29 U.S.C. 213(a)(1). See generally Allan J. Schwartz, Who is employed in "capacity of outside salesman" within the meaning of 13(a)(1) of Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C.A. 213(a)(1)), as amended.
[7] Pablo v.ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc., No. C 08-03894 SI, UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 64969,(N.D. Cal., June 20, 2011, supra.
[8] AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, No. 09-893, SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES, 131 S. Ct. 1740; 179 L. Ed. 2d 742; 2011 U.S. LEXIS 3367; 161 Lab. Cas. (CCH) P10,368; 22 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. S 957; 52 Comm. Reg. (P & F) 1179,(April 27, 2011).
[9] Pablo et al., supra.
[10] See Am. Pipe & Constr. Co. v. Utah, No. 72-1195, SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES, 414 U.S. 538; 94 S. Ct. 756; 38 L. Ed. 2d 713; 1974 U.S. LEXIS 42;(January 16, 1974).
External links
- ServiceMaster website
- Company Timeline
- ServiceMaster goes private with buyout
- ServiceMaster website
- Company Timeline
- ServiceMaster goes private with buyout
- https://www.lexis.com/research/retrieve?_m=751500302b6ce5a99cabdae7e633d54d&csvc=bl&cform=byName&_fmtstr=CITE&docnum=&_startdoc=1&wchp=dGLbVzS-zSkAz&_md5=1f569dc070615bb2dd4a646e27081030
- http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode29/usc_sec_29_00000213----000-.html
- https://www.lexis.com/research/retrieve?cc=&pushme=1&tmpFBSel=all&totaldocs=&taggedDocs=&toggleValue=&numDocsChked=0&prefFBSel=0&delformat=CITE&fpDocs=&fpNodeId=&fpCiteReq=&expNewLead=id%3D%22expandedNewLead%22&fpSetup=0&brand=ldc&_m=6cd66a7188c29357d65182392276c637&docnum=2&_fmtstr=FULL&_startdoc=1&wchp=dGLzVzt-zSkAz&_md5=15c094d02bb3f9cc7007a0096c7e20c1&focBudTerms=&focBudSel=all
- https://www.lexis.com/research/retrieve?cc=&pushme=1&tmpFBSel=all&totaldocs=&taggedDocs=&toggleValue=&numDocsChked=0&prefFBSel=0&delformat=CITE&fpDocs=&fpNodeId=&fpCiteReq=&expNewLead=id%3D%22expandedNewLead%22&fpSetup=0&brand=ldc&_m=d4945a9898f06a7205b9b7ac48ca3c2a&docnum=1&_fmtstr=FULL&_startdoc=1&wchp=dGLzVzt-zSkAz&_md5=ffce6e371a8d887a3ed5990d310186a6&focBudTerms=&focBudSel=all]