During the first quarter of 2025, the New York State legislature and Governor Kathy Hochul have been actively advancing several initiatives that – if passed and signed – will require New York employers to adapt their policies...more
4/1/2025
/ Class Action ,
Employee Rights ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Reform ,
Liquidated Damages ,
New York ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Severance Agreements ,
Severance Pay ,
State Labor Laws ,
Stop Work Orders ,
Wage and Hour
Seyfarth Synopsis: A legislative proposal by the Governor, and a new appellate court decision, may have significant ramifications for weekly pay litigation in New York state and federal courts....more
1/19/2024
/ Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Liquidated Damages ,
New York ,
Private Right of Action ,
Proposed Amendments ,
State Labor Laws ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour
Seyfarth Synopsis: Federal courts within the Second Circuit have held that merely alleging a pay frequency violation under New York Labor Law § 191 is insufficient for standing under Article III of the United States...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Second Circuit has held that the standard for final FLSA collective action certification is less stringent than the standard for class action certification under Rule 23....more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Furthering a recent trend, a judge in the District of Massachusetts denied a motion for conditional certification because there was no personal jurisdiction over non-Massachusetts entities with respect to...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The New York Court of Appeals holds that the state’s class action rules require notice of settlements to be sent to putative class members – even though no class has been certified....more
12/14/2017
/ Appeals ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Class Members ,
Employment Litigation ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Notice Requirements ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Settlement ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Wage and Hour
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Second Circuit will soon decide key issues for FLSA practitioners: whether settlements pursuant to an Offer of Judgment are subject to court review and approval, and whether the standards for final...more
10/26/2017
/ Chipotle Grill ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Collective Actions ,
Employee Definition ,
Employment Litigation ,
Exempt-Employees ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Food Service Workers ,
FRCP 23 ,
FRCP 23(f) ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Misclassification ,
Offer of Judgment ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Rule 68 ,
Settlement Agreements ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
As our loyal readers are well aware, the U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral argument in its Fall 2017 term regarding the enforceability of arbitration agreements with class and collective action waivers. This has...more
Plaintiffs’ counsel frequently speak of the “low” burden necessary at first stage for conditional certification under the FLSA. However, a recent decision from the Eastern District of New York highlights that plaintiffs may...more
Joining a budding national trend, renowned restaurateur Danny Meyer of Union Square Hospitality Group last week announced that he will eliminate formal tipping at his restaurants starting in 2016. Meyer stated that the new...more
10/22/2015
/ Class Action ,
Collective Actions ,
Discrimination ,
Disparate Impact ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hospitality Industry ,
Minimum Wage ,
Resorts & Restaurants ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Tip Credit ,
Tip-Pooling ,
Tipped Employees ,
Tips ,
Wage and Hour
Blog readers who have been following the recent wave of wage and hour lawsuits by interns will recall that the Second Circuit, in a major decision issued in early July, held that the “primary beneficiary” test should govern...more
9/17/2015
/ Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Internships ,
Minimum Wage ,
Multi-Factor Test ,
Nurses ,
Primary Beneficiary Test ,
Unpaid Interns ,
Wage and Hour
As this blog previously reported, a three-judge panel of the Second Circuit ruled against two separate groups of interns in early July, applying the “primary beneficiary” test—to evaluate whether unpaid interns are trainees...more
Expert witness fees are not recoverable under the FLSA. So held the Second Circuit in a decision that highlights a strategy we have previously discussed for employers to fend off class/collective actions....more
This blog recently reported on the first wave of lawsuits challenging the classification of independent contractors in the “on-demand” economy. The second wave has now arrived, as numerous tech companies have been hit with...more
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...more
As we have noted in previous posts (most recently here and here), courts have been paying closer attention to the terms of FLSA settlements and occasionally refusing to approve agreements where the amount of attorneys’ fees...more