Wage & Hour

Expert Analysis

• Forecasting A Rise In 11th Circ. State Court Class Actions

  

  Two recent opinions from the Eleventh Circuit have created an unusual landscape that may result in a substantial increase of class action litigation in state courts, particularly in Florida, that will be unable to utilize removal tools such as the Class Action Fairness Act, says Alec Schultz at Hilgers Graben.

• Key Employer Takeaways From DOJ's Poultry Antitrust Case

  

  The U.S. Department of Justice’s settlement with three major U.S. poultry processors for allegedly conspiring to fix employee wages and benefits may signal an uptick in antitrust violation investigations and serves as a reminder to companies of the risks they face when managing employee personal data, say attorneys at Akin Gump.

• Recent Employer Lessons On Facing Calif. Labor Hearings

  

  A California state appeals court in Elsie Seviour-Iloff v. LaPaille recently set forth multiple important holdings expanding the potential relief available to employees pursuing administrative relief for wage claims with the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement, and they offer crucial takeaways for employers, says Tyler Bernstein at Sheppard Mullin.

• Poultry Sector Wage-Fixing Case Shows Info Exchange Risks

  

  The nearly $85 million settlement of a U.S. Department of Justice case accusing Cargill and other poultry processors of conspiring to suppress worker pay should prod employers and trade groups to scrutinize all exchanges of potentially competitive sensitive information for compliance with labor market antitrust rules, say attorneys at Mintz.

• Beware Employee Tracking As A Response To 'Quiet Quitting'

  

  "Quiet quitting" — a recent trend that encourages a bare-minimum work ethic — may prompt employers to electronically monitor worker productivity, but this response raises concerns about discrimination, employee classification, labor law compliance, overtime pay and workplace morale, says Chris Deubert at Constangy Brooks.

• 9th Circ. Class Cert. Move Illustrates Individual Claim Issues

  

  The Ninth Circuit's recent class certification decision in Bowerman v. Field Asset Services illustrates the challenges presented when a defendant argues that not all putative class members have been injured or that damages must be determined on a claimant-by-claimant basis, says Robert Fuller at Robinson Bradshaw.

• What Proposed Contractor Rule May Mean For Wage Litigation

  

  The Biden administration's proposed independent contractor rule could have major implications for wage and hour litigation, but comparing it to the Trump administration's rule could help employers prepare for the next phase of employee classification disputes, say Jessica Scott and Frederick Yarger at Wheeler Trigg.

• A Calif. Employer's Guide To Telework Expense Obligations

  

  As the COVID-19 pandemic recedes and California employers face an increase in workplace reimbursement lawsuits from remote employees, it’s imperative to know what expenses must be covered — and how repayment should be administered — under state law, says Eric Fox at Gordon & Rees.

• High Court FLSA Case Threatens OT Pay Landscape

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court will soon decide in Helix Energy Solutions v. Hewitt whether a high-paid oil rig worker is entitled to overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and its eventual opinion could bring a new class of employees within the purview of the law’s requirements, say Melissa Legault and Wade Erwin at Squire Patton.

• Calif. Pay Stub Ruling Spotlights Overtime, Bonus Compliance

  

  Though a California appellate court's recent ruling provides a simple answer to how employers must list true-up overtime wages on pay stubs, it also underscores the importance of reviewing compliance requirements for wage statements where bonuses or other factors affect regular rates, says Paul Lynd at ArentFox Schiff.

• 11th Circ. Clarifies FLSA Administrative Exemption

  

  The Eleventh Circuit's recent decision in Fowler v. OSP Prevention Group about administrative employee determination under the Fair Labor Standards Act highlights the importance for employers to critically consider all required factors for an FLSA exemption, say Sarah Guo and Larry Perlman at Foley & Lardner.

• Why Gig Platforms Should Be On Alert

  

  The Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general have set their sights on the gig economy and practices they view as deceptive and unfair, which will open gig platforms to more scrutiny — and past cases against gig-economy giants including Uber and Instacart are cautionary tales to keep in mind, say attorneys at Venable.

• More Employment Regs May See 'Major Questions' Challenges

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's recent use of the major questions doctrine to strike down regulation has already been cited in lower court cases challenging U.S. Department of Labor authority to implement wage and hour changes, and could provide a potent tool to litigants seeking to restrain federal workplace and labor regulations, say Jeffrey Brecher and Courtney Malveaux at Jackson Lewis.