Mealey's Employment : Mealey's : Legal News & Analysis

Mealey's Employment

November 09, 2023
Food Sales Reps Tell U.S. High Court FLSA Exemption Petition Should Be Denied

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court justices to decide a question concerning the evidence necessary for an exemption to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) should be denied as “[t]he standard of proof arises with respect to the factual determination of the employee’s primary duty, and the difference between these standards almost never makes a difference to the outcome of a case,” food sales representatives argue in their respondent brief.
November 09, 2023
Uber Driver Seeks U.S. High Court Ruling On Transportation Worker FAA Exemption

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court should decide a current circuit split on whether transportation workers who transport passengers across state lines are “‘engaged in interstate commerce’” and exempt from the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), a rideshare driver argues in his petition for a writ of certiorari.
November 09, 2023
7-Eleven Franchisees Tell Massachusetts High Court They Trigger ABC Test

BOSTON — 7-Eleven franchisees trigger the Massachusetts test for independent contractor misclassification, also known as the “ABC” test, as the franchisor’s “revenue is directly dependent on the franchisees’ work of running the stores,” five franchisees argue in a brief filed in the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court after a question concerning the franchisees’ contractual obligations was certified by the First Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.
November 09, 2023
U.S. Supreme Court Hears Arguments On Veterans’ Education Benefits

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) interpretation of how education benefits under two GI bills are capped is “Byzantine,” an attorney representing a veteran argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on Nov. 8.
November 08, 2023
$1.15M Gender Bias, Retaliation Verdict Returned In Woman’s Suit Against Google

NEW YORK — A federal jury in New York returned a $1.15 million verdict for a Google LLC employee who sued the tech giant alleging that she was hired at a lower level and paid less than similarly situated male co-workers.
November 08, 2023
Former Tesla Worker Appeals Nearly $3.2M Race Bias Verdict After Retrial

SAN FRANCISCO — A former Tesla Inc. worker who sued for racial discrimination and a hostile work environment filed a notice of appeal in a federal court in California following a nearly $3.2 million verdict after a retrial on compensatory and punitive damages.
November 08, 2023
Federal Judge Leaves $22M Wage Verdict Against Battery Maker Untouched

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A federal judge in Pennsylvania on Nov. 7 denied a renewed motion for judgment as a matter of law, a new trial or remittitur filed by a battery manufacturer following a $22 million verdict in a back wages case brought by the acting secretary of Labor.
November 08, 2023
Objectors Appeal $130,000 Settlement Approval In Hospital Vaccine Mandate Case

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Eight objectors filed a notice of appeal in a federal court in Michigan after final approval of a $130,000 settlement was granted in a class case by current and former hospital employees challenging their employer’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccine policy.
November 08, 2023
$215M Goldman Sachs Gender Bias Settlement Granted Final Approval

NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York on Nov. 7 granted final approval of a $215 million settlement between Goldman, Sachs & Co. and The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (together, Goldman Sachs) and a class of female employees who allege gender discrimination.
November 08, 2023
Baltimore Police Department Told To Supplement Discovery In Title VII Suit

BALTIMORE — Finding that the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) complied with some of the discovery requests from an officer suing it for discrimination and retaliation and noting the department’s inability to produce some requested documents, a Maryland federal magistrate judge directed the defendant to supplement its responses in some categories and to provide further explanations and documentation in others.
November 07, 2023
High Court Won’t Hear UPS Driver’s ADA Appeal Concerning Essential Job Functions

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Nov. 6 denied a petition for a writ of certiorari by a United Parcel Service Inc. (UPS) delivery driver who claimed that the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals improperly upheld the denial of his request for a smaller vehicle while he was injured and sought a ruling on “[w]hether an employer’s selection of the equipment used to perform a job precludes a court from considering whether modifications of such equipment would still allow a union employee to perform the essential functions of his job under the ADA [Americans with Disabilities Act].”
November 06, 2023
11th Circuit Denies En Banc Review Request In TV Meteorologist’s Race Bias Case

ATLANTA — A television meteorologist who was fired after co-workers filed harassment complaints failed to show that an 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel majority incorrectly considered the inclusion of his race in the documents reviewed by the person who authorized his firing as well as the race of his replacement, the 11th Circuit ruled, denying the meteorologist’s petition for rehearing en banc.
November 06, 2023
Cleaning Franchisees Seek Preliminary Approval Of $30M Classification Settlement

SAN FRANCISCO — Cleaning service franchisees who allege that they have been misclassified filed a motion in a federal court in California seeking preliminary approval of a class settlement under which Jan-Pro Franchising International Inc. will pay $30 million and make changes to its business practices that the plaintiffs state will benefit California franchisees.
November 06, 2023
3rd Circuit Upholds Dismissal Of Railroad Worker’s Age Bias Suit

PHILADELPHIA — A railroad worker who was fired after a train mishap while a younger worker who was driving the train was given demerits but retained his job failed to show that his termination was due to age, a Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled, affirming a trial court’s dismissal of the complaint.
November 02, 2023
Alaska Native Corporation Is Not An ‘Employer’ Under Title VII, Federal Judge Says

BROWNSVILLE, Texas — A former employee of an Alaska Native corporation who says she was discriminated against by the company failed to state her claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because such corporations are expressly excluded from the statute, a Texas federal judge found in adopting a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation.
November 01, 2023
5th Circuit: Trial Court Must Reconsider Army Hospital Surgeon’s Retaliation Claim

NEW ORLEANS — A trial court properly rejected age bias allegations by an Army hospital surgeon in his 70s who was removed from his post as chief of surgery but erred in finding that that the surgeon failed to establish a prima facie case of retaliation in connection with some of his actions taken after his clinical privileges were placed in abeyance, a Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled, remanding for the lower court to consider whether the Army provided a legitimate and non-pretextual reason for the action.
October 31, 2023
Domino’s Seeks U.S. High Court Ruling On Local Delivery Drivers And FAA

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Domino’s Pizza LLC truck drivers (D&S drivers), found by the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to be exempt from the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) in their class case alleging unreimbursed business expenses and violation of California’s unfair competition law, filed in the U.S. Supreme Court a waiver of their right to respond to Domino’s petition for writ of certiorari in which the pizza franchise argues that circuits are split on whether local delivery drivers are engaged in interstate commerce.
October 30, 2023
U.S. High Court: Solicitor General May Argue In Title VII Job Transfer Case

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 30 granted a motion by the solicitor general for leave to participate as amicus curiae and for divided arguments in an appeal concerning whether a lateral transfer constitutes discrimination and is actionable under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
October 30, 2023
U.S. Supreme Court Won’t Hear Maine Health Workers’ COVID-19 Vaccine Challenge

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A petition for a writ of certiorari by Maine health care workers fired for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine citing religious beliefs was denied by the U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 30.
October 27, 2023
Amazon Seeks U.S. Supreme Court Review Of Arbitration Denial In Drivers’ Tips Suit

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Federal appellate courts “are intractably divided” over whether local delivery drivers are exempt from the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), and intervention by the nation’s highest court “is urgently needed” as “[t]he existing 3-2 circuit split cannot repair itself,” Amazon.com Inc. and Amazon Logistics Inc. (together, Amazon) argue in a petition for a writ of certiorari.
October 27, 2023
California Panel: Sovereign Immunity Protects Tribe From Employment Claims

SAN DIEGO — Sovereign immunity protects the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians and two of its employees who were alleged to have violated state law and the U.S. Constitution when they informed a man recently hired by the band that he would have to maintain a gaming license that required him to pay child support to work at the tribe’s hotel, a California appellate court panel found in affirming a trial court’s judgment.
October 27, 2023
5th Circuit: Amicus Texas NAACP Can’t Participate In FedEx Retaliation Argument

NEW ORLEANS — The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals denied a motion by Texas State Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (Texas NAACP) to participate as amicus curiae in oral argument in an appeal in which FedEx Corporate Services Inc. argues that a trial court erred in entering final judgment for a former employee on her retaliation claims and should reverse the award of more than $366 million.
October 26, 2023
NLRB Issues Final Rule On Standard For Determining Joint-Employer Status

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Labor Relations Board on Oct. 26 issued its final rule on the standard for determining joint-employer status and in doing so rescinded the 2020 final rule that was promulgated by the prior board.
October 26, 2023
7th Circuit Approves Make-Whole Remedy In NLRB Pandemic Response Case

CHICAGO — The Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals approved a stipulation and proposed consent order in a pandemic response case between the National Labor Relations Board and a Wisconsin salon business under which the business will make the charging party whole and pay the NLRB’s attorney fees and expenses.
October 26, 2023
5th Circuit Upholds Dismissal Of Former LSU Director’s RICO Claims

NEW ORLEANS — Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) claims by a former Louisiana State University (LSU) assistant athletic director who alleged that she was retaliated against for reporting sexual harassment by the school’s former football coach failed as they were both time-barred and causation was not shown, a Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled, affirming a trial court’s dismissal of the claims.