A 9th Circuit opinion from this morning emphasizes how difficult it is for union members to avoid federal preemption of claims against their unions.
Teamster union members at a Lucky’s warehouse in Fullerton, California, contended that their union and various union officials misled them into accepting a substandard union contract in retaliation for the members’ earlier acts […]
A 9th Circuit panel (including Pregerson and Bea) has unanimously reversed Judge Manuel Real on a host of state law claims that Real erroneously held were preempted by § 301. The panel held that the employee’s claims for public policy wrongful termination, fraud, age discrimination, IIED, and NIED did not require interpretation of the CBA, and […]
Legislature may require injured state ferry workers to bring claims against the State to the Workers Comp Board, not to court.
In 2003, the Alaska legislature amended AS 09.50.250 and thereby a) restored the state’s sovereign immunity from suit by injured state-employed seamen (employees of the Alaska Marine Highway System), and b) referred claims by such employees […]
The Court’s opinion today in Glover v. State, DOTPF, MMHS, Op. No. 6222 (Alaska Jan. 18, 2008), covers important issues surrounding sovereign immunity (federal abrogation, constructive consent), pre-emption (discrimination against federal claims), access to courts, and Equal Protection. The Court (per Justice Carpeneti) compliments Superior Court Judge Patricia Collins by incorporating a major part of her […]
ERISA preemption of municipal regulation of “health care expenditures”: After the District Court enjoined the implementation of San Francisco’s ordinance requiring larger private employers to make provide health care expenditures, the Court of Appeals has now stayed that injunction and issued a lengthy opinion (35 pages) holding that the City and the union intervenors have “a probability, […]
Jason Bresser worked as an independent contractor at Schlumberger’s Prudhoe Bay motor shop. Given his classification, Schlumberger did not permit Bresser to participate in its retirement and health benefits plans. In 2005, Schlumberger terminated his employment. In this litigation, Bresser challenged his classification and contended Schlumberger suspended and then fired him in retaliation for “having brought problems of […]
Two recent appellate opinions illustrate the possibilities and limitations for employees pursuing wage claims.
The 9th Circuit case reminds practitioners that § 301 permits an individual union member to sue for unpaid wages laid out in the CBA, as well as for wrongful discharge.
Although claims arising under a collective bargaining agreement that concern questions of labor policy […]
Court holds that OSHA pre-empts state pro-gun laws
Alaska lightly restricts an employer’s right to control guns at work. Employers may bar guns from the central workplace, but have less control over guns in their employees’ parked cars. AS 18.65.800. Other states place tighter restrictions on employers. SHRM reports that Oklahoma “prohibits employers from establishing policies banning employees […]
In 1992, Congress enacted the Community Health Aide Program to address dental problems of Alaska Natives; as part of CHAP, Congress also created a Community Health Aide Certification Board to license dental aides. Five years later, Congress created the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC) to contract with the Indian Health Service to implement CHAP. Starting in […]
Robert Burnside and 270 other unionized employees sued Kiewit Pacific under California state law for pay for time spent travelling between designated meeting sites and job sites. Kiewit claimed that the collective bargaining agreement preempted such claims, and left Burnside’s class with only federal claims under the CBA.
Kiewit removed to federal court. When Burnside moved to […]
