The decision is seen as a blow to employee rights.
In May, the United States Supreme Court issued a decision in Epic Systems v. Lewis. While most Americans do not pay attention to the various opinions issued by the Supreme Court, this one has the potential to have a major impact on the lives of average workers. Written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, the Supreme Court decided that employers are permitted to require employees to submit to individual arbitration rather than to join together to sue their employer. As an employment attorney can explain, this is a very bad decision for employees who have been treated unfairly by their employers.
In Epic Systems, a group of employees filed a joint lawsuit — known as a class action — against their employer for “wage theft.” In other words, their claim was that their employer, Epic Systems, had illegally underpaid them. As individuals, their claims were probably not worth a lot of money — and were probably not worth the time and expense of filing a lawsuit. But as a group, their claims could be pursued together and they could not only share the cost of a lawsuit, but could show a pattern and practice of wage theft. Epic Systems fought the lawsuit, claiming that the Federal Arbitration Act blocked their claims because all of the employees had signed a contract and waived their right to sue. Instead, under their contract, they had agreed to individual arbitration.
According to an experienced employment attorney, arbitration heavily favors employers. It is a form of alternative dispute resolution where — instead of going to court — the parties have their matter heard in front of an arbitrator, who is a neutral third party, typically an attorney. However, because employers typically go to arbitration repeatedly, they have the advantage. They know the arbitrators, and they tend to have more money and access to lawyers. And if employees are required to go to arbitration individually rather than collectively, their claims might not be worth the time or expense.
In 2012, the National Labor Relations Board found that the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (the NLRA) voids arbitration clauses in cases like this because it gives workers the right to “…engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection.” According to the Board, that included filing class action lawsuits to protect their rights.
In the Epic Systems decision, the Supreme Court disagreed, holding that class action lawsuits do not qualify as “concerted activities.” Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dissented, writing that the idea that employees can only seek relief for wage and hour grievances through individual arbitration does not come from Congress.
According to a knowledge employment attorney, the impact of the Epic Systems decision will likely be to prevent workers from seeking justice for situations where their employers have harmed them, such as through wage theft. It may also encourage employers to be more aggressive in requiring employees to sign arbitration agreements.
Having a skilled employment attorney is vital when the law continues to change, often against the interests of works and in favor of businesses. Contact PLBH today at (800) 435-7542 or info@plblaw.com to learn more about how we can help if you have a wage and hour claim against your employer.