Labor and Employment Law Blog

Arbitration Agreement Contained in Employee Handbook and Signed During Pending Class Action Is Invalid

On April 20, 2018, the California Court of Appeal, in the case Nguyen v. Inter-Coast International Training, Inc., held that an arbitration agreement contained in an employee handbook was both procedurally and substantively unconscionable. In that case, after a wage and hour class action was filed and certified against the employer, the employer modified its […]

April 28, 2018 | 1 min read | Tagged: Agreement, Arbitration, California Court of Appeal, Employment Arbitration Agreements, Handbook, Policy, Unconscionable, Wage & Hour, Wage Discrimination, Wages

Anne E. Dwyer Counsel

NLRB Deferral Rules to Arbitration

Many employers are unsure about the NLRB’s deferral to arbitration rules. For nearly 60 years the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) had applied the “Spielberg/Olin” standard in cases involving whether to defer to a decision reached through a grievance/arbitration procedure in a union contract. Under this standard, the NLRB would defer IF the following factors […]

October 31, 2017 | 2 min read | Tagged: Arbitration, Collective Bargaining, Employment Arbitration Agreements

Jerry Morales Of Counsel

SCOTUS to Address Current Split Over Enforceability of Class Action Waivers Contained in Mandatory Arbitration Policies

Many employers have implemented mandatory arbitration policies requiring that all employment related disputes be resolved through final and binding arbitration rather than in traditional court proceedings. In addition to these potential benefits, many employers have added class action waivers to their arbitration policies, in essence requiring that claims be brought on an individual basis only, and […]

October 13, 2017 | 2 min read | Tagged: Arbitration, Class Action Waiver, Employment Arbitration Agreements, Protected Concerted Activity, Section 7

Bill Hayden Of Counsel

Ninth Circuit Invalidates Class Action Waivers Contained in Employment Arbitration Policies

The Ninth Circuit, currently joined by two other federal courts of appeal, has adopted the longstanding position of the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) that class action waivers commonly found in employment arbitration agreements violate the right to engage in protected concerted activity pursuant to the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”). Two other federal courts […]

August 25, 2016 | 1 min read | Tagged: Class Action Waiver, Employment Arbitration Agreements, FAA, NLRA, Protected Concerted Activity

Bill Hayden Of Counsel