California truckers win $2 million in wage theft suit
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Seven Los Angeles-area truckers have won a $2 million claim against an international shipping company accused of stealing their wages by improperly classifying them as independent contractors and charging them to lease its trucks to drive.
In a decision with implications for hundreds of companies and thousands of truckers in Southern California alone, a San Diego County Superior Court judge held that the seven plaintiffs should have been defined as employees of Pacer Cartage under California's labor law, not as independent owner-operators.
Judge Jay Bloom ruled the seven drivers, who were Hispanic and spoke little English, were entitled to reimbursement for the money California-based Pacer deducted from their wages for the truck leases, insurance, vehicle maintenance, fuel and other out-of-pocket expenses.
That judgment, returned on Wednesday after a 14-day non-jury trial, came to just over $2 million collectively, the same sum previously awarded to the seven truckers by a state labor commissioner and appealed to the court by the company.
Alvin Gomez, the lead plaintiff's attorney, said on Friday the ruling would bolster litigation already brought against several other trucking firms and for additional wage-theft lawsuits he planned to file next week.
"This is a tremendous victory in the fight against misclassification," Gomez said, adding that the ruling had the potential to "forever reshape the United States trucking industry."
He said most California freight hauling companies now operate under the same complex truck-leasing scheme, which the judge ruled violates state labor law.
Pacer, a subsidiary of global shipping company XPO Logistics Inc, plans to appeal the judge's decision, said Troy Cooper, XPO's chief operating officer.
"We believe the drivers in question are properly classified as contractors, and that this case is without merit," he said.
The truckers worked at the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the busiest U.S. container cargo hub.
Gomez said misclassification of drivers became more pervasive after a new clean air program went into effect in 2008, barring older, heavier-polluting trucks from the ports.
Many drivers, unable to afford to buy new trucks of their own, were forced to sell their rigs and lease trucks from shipping companies, which also acquired exclusive access to the waterfront under port "concessions" created under the clean-air program.
The truckers were barred from entering the ports to pick up cargo unless driving for an authorized concession. And their lease arrangements effectively locked them in to driving for no more than one company.
California truckers win $2 million in wage theft suit
Discussion in 'Truckers News' started by Rockin&Rollin, Jan 31, 2015.
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How do you like that, they bucked the corporatism/cronyism you advocate and won!...Thanks for posting that!
drvrtech77, chalupa and Puppage Thank this. -
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Pay no mind to the Floridian......sounds like a corporate troll sighing in disgust because the drivers got a leg up.
It's not over I'm sure but good for them if the rulings hold up.........and for you intermodal guys ( ports ) the EPA regs that started this landslide ARE coming to a port near you. The EPA is making all entities responsible for their own carbon footprint starting with public facilities accepting govmt. subsidiaries and eventually filtering down to the private sector. It will be awhile but it is coming and older iron will not be allowed in the facility .
Then like this case, the carrier will either provide compliant equipment or not serve the facility and of course he won't want any driver employees......so the fleece purchase of the compliant equipment.
What's very interesting is the facts about not being able to take the truck elsewhere.......been that way forever across all fleece deals........this indeed could reshape many lease deals.
7 drivers huh? Spoke very little English? I love it! The epitome of underestimation and the arrogance of corporate America. I'll bet the corporate guys never saw this one coming .
Sounds like legal never heard of Caesar Chavez.
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Swift is next
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Here is the real problem:
I see no flaws in the Judge's logic:
Rockin&Rollin Thanks this. -
they thought they couldn't speak English and they can srew them and they wouldn't complain. but any human can take bs only for so long...
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Yeah, this is good for the drivers. Drivers HAVE to get paid for their work and time. When ever people start name calling over politics, look past that to your paycheck. You spend time awaiting entry to a place, you should get paid. Owner operaters are in their own world, braver people than me that's for sure. But as a company driver, you want a steady paycheck, they're making bank off the drivers, tossing us pennies.
Look up - KAG West/ lawsuit - These attorneys are going to run through the trucking industry and correct things for the driver. ( While collecting millions in legal fees.) You can be sure that the industry will fight this tooth and nail, they would rather spent millions on corporate attorneys than pay out a few hundred thousand in earned wages to their drivers. -
Nice to see the little guy win once in a while.
Rockin&Rollin Thanks this.
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