Wage & Hour

  • April 01, 2025

    Truck Drivers Get $1.3M In Misclassification Suit

    Five truck drivers will take home about $1.3 million to resolve their lawsuit accusing a now-defunct trucking company of misclassifying them as independent contractors to withhold wages and benefits from them, a filing in California federal court said.

  • April 01, 2025

    Bloomberg Campaign Scores Partial Win In Unpaid OT Suit

    Michael Bloomberg's 2020 presidential campaign organization attained a partial win in a suit accusing it of not paying field organizers minimum wage, a New York federal judge ruled, saying that federal law doesn't apply to the campaign and certain state law claims were rootless.

  • April 01, 2025

    6th Circ. Lets Feds End Whistleblower's NASA Contractor Suit

    The Sixth Circuit stood by a lower court's decision to let the federal government intervene and successfully seek dismissal for a whistleblower's False Claims Act suit against a NASA contractor, applying a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court precedent to back the government's recent tear of dismissal bids in FCA cases.

  • April 01, 2025

    Waldorf Astoria Wants Spa Workers' Wage Suit Trimmed

    Spa workers' claims accusing a Waldorf Astoria of profiting off its failure to pay them overtime and minimum wages and retaliating against them after the suit was filed should be axed, the hotel told a Hawaii federal court, saying the workers' new complaint fails to fix an older one's deficiencies.

  • April 01, 2025

    NC Atty Gets $775K Fee For Multistate Wage Verdict

    A North Carolina federal judge has awarded $775,000 in attorney fees to the workers of an Apple-affiliated repair company following their six-figure win in a multistate wage class action over back wages and damages.

  • April 01, 2025

    Uber Case Shouldn't Head To PA Justices, 3rd Circ. Told

    The Third Circuit has already made clear which standard applies to determine whether workers are independent contractors or employees under Pennsylvania law, said the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, backing Uber's arguments to not send a misclassification case to the state justices.

  • April 01, 2025

    NYC Must Face Sanitation Workers' Discrimination Suit

    A federal judge declined to toss a group of sanitation agents' suit accusing New York City of unlawfully picking white, male garbage collectors to move into better-paying sanitation police jobs, though he shrank the time frame covered by some of the agents' claims.

  • April 01, 2025

    Counterclaim Against Paralegal Must Proceed, Firm Says

    A counterclaim accusing a paralegal of bringing an unpaid overtime wages suit against an El Paso law firm in order to extort it for money should stay in play, the firm told a Texas federal court, saying its counterclaim is sufficiently linked to the former employee's litigation.

  • March 31, 2025

    Trump Picks Boyden Gray Attorney For Top DOL Lawyer Role

    President Donald Trump on Monday nominated Jonathan Berry of Boyden Gray PLLC to be solicitor of labor, the U.S. Department of Labor's top lawyer.

  • March 31, 2025

    Minimum Wage Orders Blocked For H-2A Farmworkers In Wash.

    The U.S. Department of Labor may not approve minimum wage job orders for migrant farmworkers in Washington state, a federal judge has ruled, saying seasonal farmworkers with H-2A visas must receive paychecks that don't depress agricultural wages in the area.

  • March 31, 2025

    Chicken Processor Strikes $7.26M Deal In Wage Suit

    A North Carolina chicken processor and workers claiming unpaid wages jointly requested that a federal court greenlight a deal in which the company agreed to pay $7.26 million to the workers.

  • March 31, 2025

    NJ Panel Denies Double Pay For Union In COVID Case

    Members of the Jersey City Public Employees union are not entitled to double pay under the COVID-19 state of emergency declared by Gov. Phil Murphy on March 9, 2020, even though their contract calls for the increased compensation during such designations, a New Jersey appellate panel ruled Monday.

  • March 31, 2025

    JB Hunt Drivers Urge 9th Circ. To Revive Piece-Rate Wage Suit

    Delivery truck drivers urged the Ninth Circuit to revive their wage-and-hour suit alleging J.B. Hunt used a piece-rate formula that did not separately compensate for tasks done off-the-clock, which included fueling trucks or completing paperwork, arguing Monday the company's system ultimately failed to pay drivers for all hours worked. 

  • March 31, 2025

    Conn. High Court Urged To Expand Amazon Wage Questions

    Amazon workers asked Connecticut's top court to expand two questions certified from the Second Circuit over whether post-shift anti-theft screenings should have been compensated, saying the time workers spent walking to screening areas is also part of the issue.

  • March 31, 2025

    EMS Workers Get Nothing In Wage Suit Against NC County

    A North Carolina county violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by underpaying emergency medical services workers during certain pay periods, but the workers are not entitled to any extra money because they were overpaid at other times, a federal judge determined Monday.

  • March 31, 2025

    DOL Taps ZipRecruiter Alum As Chief Economist

    The U.S. Department of Labor announced Monday that it has appointed a former top analyst for ZipRecruiter as its chief economist.

  • March 31, 2025

    Paramount Escapes 'Dexter' COVID Safety Worker's Bias Suit

    A New York federal judge threw out a COVID-19 safety worker's suit accusing Paramount Global of undermining and firing her because she's an older woman, saying she failed to rebut the "Dexter" producer's argument that she was fired because she was "toxic" and a poor performer.

  • March 31, 2025

    J&J, Scientist Resolve Pregnancy Discrimination Suit

    Johnson & Johnson agreed to settle a former senior scientist's suit claiming she was fired after she announced her pregnancy so the pharmaceutical company could avoid paying her while on maternity leave, according to a filing in New Jersey federal court.

  • March 31, 2025

    Ex-Workday Atty's Bias Claims Axed, Stock Dispute Kept Alive

    A California federal judge tossed a Black ex-Workday attorney's claims that he endured race and disability bias that culminated in the software vendor sending police to his house to conduct an unnecessary wellness check, but the judge allowed the attorney pursue claims that he was shorted on stock options.

  • March 31, 2025

    Amazon's Bid To Kick Drivers From Pay Suit Mostly Denied

    A Washington federal judge agreed to oust only two of the 11 workers Amazon asked to dismiss from an 8-year-old suit accusing the company of misclassifying drivers as independent contractors, saying the other nine made enough effort to comply with discovery.

  • March 31, 2025

    DC Police Look To Sink Gay Cop's Parental Leave Suit

    A gay police officer's suit alleging he was placed in a less desirable position after returning from parental leave should be thrown out, the Washington, D.C., police department told a federal court, saying he can't show that his new role was worse than his previous one.

  • March 28, 2025

    Trucking Co. Loses Bid To Decertify Classes In Wage Spat

    A trucking company headquartered in Nebraska can't win its bid to decertify two classes of drivers alleging they are owed unpaid minimum wages, a federal judge ruled Friday, finding an individual assessment about how workers were paid isn't necessary.

  • March 28, 2025

    FedEx Workers' Wage Suit Will Wait On Conn. Justices' Input

    A Connecticut federal judge pressed pause on a class action alleging FedEx Ground Package System Inc. failed to pay workers for their time spent undergoing preshift security screenings, giving the state's high court a chance to weigh in on a similar dispute.

  • March 28, 2025

    NY Forecast: 2nd Circ. Weighs City Worker's Free Speech Suit

    This week, the Second Circuit will consider an attempt from the former city planner for Newburgh, New York, to revive her lawsuit claiming she was fired for advocating that the city adopt antiracism policies for the city's housing initiatives.

  • March 28, 2025

    Walgreens Can't Trim Agent's Overtime Lawsuit

    Walgreens cannot escape breach of contract and unjust enrichment claims in an agent's suit alleging unpaid off-the-clock work, an Illinois federal judge ruled, saying that the worker claimed the company agreed to pay for that time.

Expert Analysis

  • 6 Reasons Why Arbitration Offers Equitable Resolutions

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    Contrary to a recent Law360 guest article, arbitration provides numerous benefits to employees, consumers and businesses alike, ensuring fair and efficient dispute resolution without the excessive fees, costs and delays associated with traditional litigation, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • PG&E Win Boosts Employers' Defamation Defense

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    A California appeals court's recent Hearn v. PG&E ruling, reversing a $2 million verdict against PG&E related to an ex-employee’s retaliation claims, provides employers with a stronger defense against defamation claims tied to termination, but also highlights the need for fairness and diligence in internal investigations and communications, say attorneys at Kaufman Dolowich.

  • A Path Forward For Employers, Regardless Of DEI Stance

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    Whether a company views the Trump administration's executive orders ending diversity, equity and inclusion programs as a win or a loss, the change rearranges the employment hazards companies face, but not the non-DEI and nondiscriminatory economic incentive to seek the best workers, says Daniel S. Levy at Advanced Analytical Consulting Group.

  • Water Cooler Talk: 'Late Night' Shows DEI Is More Than Optics

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    Amid the shifting legal landscape for corporate diversity, equity and inclusion programs, Troutman's Tracey Diamond and Emily Schifter chat with their firm's DEI committee chair, Nicole Edmonds, about how the 2019 film "Late Night" reflects the challenges and rewards of fostering meaningful inclusion.

  • NCAA Rulings Signal Game Change For Athlete Classification

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    A Tennessee federal court's recent decision in Pavia v. NCAA adds to a growing call to consider classifying college athletes as employees under federal law, a change that would have unexpected, potentially prohibitive costs for schools, says J.R. Webster Cucovatz at Gilson Daub.

  • 6 Laws Transforming Calif.'s Health Regulatory Framework

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    Attorneys at Hooper Lundy discuss a number of new California laws that raise pressing issues for independent physicians and small practice groups, ranging from the use of artificial intelligence to wage standards for healthcare employees.

  • NCAA Name, Image, Likeness Settlement Is A $2.8B Mistake

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    While the plaintiffs in House v. NCAA might call the proposed settlement on name, image and likeness payments for college athletes a breakthrough, it's a legally dubious Band-Aid that props up a system favoring a select handful of male athletes at the expense of countless others, say attorneys at Clifford Chance.

  • FLSA Ruling Shows Split Over Court Approval Of Settlements

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    A Kentucky federal court's recent ruling in Bazemore v. Papa John's highlights a growing trend of courts finding they are not required, or even authorized, to approve private settlements releasing Fair Labor Standards Act claims, underscoring a jurisdictional split and open questions that practitioners need to grapple with, say attorneys at Vedder Price.

  • At 100, Federal Arbitration Act Is Used To Thwart Justice

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    The centennial of the Federal Arbitration Act, a law intended to streamline dispute resolution in commercial agreements, is an opportunity to reflect on its transformation from a tool of fairness into a corporate shield that impedes the right to a fair trial, says Lori Andrus at the American Association for Justice.

  • Rethinking 'No Comment' For Clients Facing Public Crises

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    “No comment” is no longer a cost-free or even a viable public communications strategy for companies in crisis, and counsel must tailor their guidance based on a variety of competing factors to help clients emerge successfully, says Robert Bowers at Moore & Van Allen.

  • What Justices' FLSA Ruling Means For 2-Step Collective Cert.

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in EMD Sales v. Carrera may have sounded the death knell for the decades-old two-step process to certify collective actions under the Fair Labor Standards Act, which could lead more circuits to require a preponderance of the evidence showing that members are similarly situated, says Steven Katz at Constangy.

  • The Future Of ALJs At NLRB And DOL Post-Jarkesy

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    In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 Jarkesy ruling, several ongoing challenges to the constitutionality of the U.S. Department of Labor's and the National Labor Relations Board's administrative law judges have the potential to significantly shape the future of administrative tribunals, say attorneys at Wiley Rein.

  • Preparing For A Possible End To The Subminimum Wage

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    The U.S. Department of Labor's proposed rule to end the subminimum wage for employees with disabilities may significantly affect the community-based rehabilitation and training programs that employ these workers, so certified programs should be especially vigilant about compliance during this period of evaluation and scrutiny, say attorneys at Jackson Lewis.