Authored by Alex Passantino

The President’s FY2017 budget request seeks a nearly $50 million increase in the Wage & Hour Division’s budget.  This more than 20% increase would fund, among other things, 300 additional investigative staff — putting the number of WHD employees over 2,000 for the first time in recent memory.  WHD also seeks around $9 million for
Continue Reading One Last Time: President Seeks Huge Increase to WHD Budget, Investigators

Authored by Patrick Bannon and Anne Bider

Independent contractor misclassification claims have become an epidemic — nationally and especially in Massachusetts.  Under most tests for independent contractor status, whether an individual’s services are within the usual course of the business of the company for which they are performed is an important factor.  Under Massachusetts’ Independent Contractor Statute it is an
Continue Reading Signs of (American United) Life for Independent Contractor Status in Massachusetts

sealCo-authored by Laura E. Reasons and Noah A. Finkel

BlackBerry devices may be a thing of the past; but smartphones–and their ability to allow employees to be constantly connected–certainly aren’t going away any time soon.

On Thursday, a judge in the Northern District of Illinois held in Allen v. City of Chicago that the Chicago Police Department (CPD) did not
Continue Reading So What About Those “BlackBerry Claims” We’ve Been Worried About?

Co-authored by Richard Alfred, Patrick Bannon, and Daniel Whang

Companies burdened by an avalanche of wage and hour class and collective actions have been hoping that Tyson Foods, Inc. v. Bouaphakeo might be the game-changing decision they have been waiting for.  If the oral argument before the Supreme Court this morning is an accurate indication (and it may
Continue Reading Where’s the (Pork)? Justices Sidestep Meatiest Issues at Oral Argument in Tyson Foods

Authored by Andrew Scroggins

As expected, the Fifth Circuit once again has rejected the NLRB’s highly controversial position that the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) prohibits employers from requiring mandatory arbitration agreements that preclude employees from filing class or collective claims in any forum.

The Fifth Circuit first took up the issue nearly two years ago, when it set
Continue Reading Fifth Circuit Stands Pat, Again Rejects NLRB Attempt to Void Class and Collective Action Waiver

Co-authored by Richard Alfred and Patrick Bannon

The National Labor Relations Board’s decision in Browning-Ferris Industries of California, Inc., announced last week, dramatically expands joint employer liability under the National Labor Relations Act. A business can be found to be a joint employer of individuals, the Board concluded, even if the business has only unexercised potential power to control
Continue Reading What the Browning-Ferris Decision May Forecast for Wage and Hour Law

Co-authored by Richard Alfred, Patrick Bannon and Esther Slater McDonald

In a case that could change how wage and hour class and collective actions are litigated, Tyson Foods, Inc. recently filed its opening Supreme Court brief. Tyson seeks reversal of a $5.8 million judgment in favor of meat processing employees who claimed to have worked off the clock.

As
Continue Reading Supreme Court Briefing Begins in Tyson Foods, Inc. v. Bouaphakeo, A Potential Wage and Hour Blockbuster

Authored by Kara Goodwin

Last week, a federal district court decertified a Rule 23 class of more than 1,000 insurance agents who claimed that Bankers Life and Casualty Co. misclassified them as independent contractors, and, as a result, they were entitled $16.9 million in overtime damages under the Washington Minimum Wage Act. In decertifying the class, the court held that
Continue Reading Agents Can’t Insure Class Treatment – Varied Experiences Require Decertification

Co-authored by Robert Whitman, Adam Smiley, and Meredith-Anne Berger

In a closely watched case affecting the viability of unpaid internship programs at for-profit employers, the Second Circuit held that the “primary beneficiary” test should be used to decide whether interns should be deemed employees or trainees. The court also held that this test requires highly individualized inquiries —
Continue Reading Second Circuit Teaches Unpaid Interns a Lesson

Co-authored by Richard Alfred, Patrick Bannon and Esther Slater McDonald

Tyson Foods, Inc. v. Bouaphakeo

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed yesterday to hear an appeal challenging a nearly $6.0 million judgment in a collective and class action case against Tyson Foods, Inc. In Tyson Foods, Inc. v. Bouaphakeo, a wage and hour collective and class action regarding the
Continue Reading Game Changer? The Supreme Court Agrees to Consider Standards for Certifying FLSA Collective Actions and State Law Class Actions