Walmart is confident in what it says is above-average pay it offers its drivers and takes issue with a decision Thursday by a federal appeals court denying the company’s bid for a rehearing on a class-action lawsuit over back wages.
“We continue to believe that our truck drivers are paid in compliance with California law and often in excess of what California law requires,” the company said in a statement to FreightWaves. “We are proud that our drivers are among the best paid in the industry, earning, on average, between $80,000 to over $100,000 per year. We disagree with the decision.”
Walmart (NYSE: WMT) in January petitioned the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit to reconsider an appellate panel ruling that the company had to abide by a lower-court decision in which the jury awarded $54.6 million to a group of California-based drivers compensating them for 10-hour end-of-shift layovers, sleeper-berth rest breaks, and inspections.
The three-judge panel from the 9th Circuit found that the drivers were entitled to compensation under California law because Walmart had exercised control over their schedules during mandated layovers and other breaks. State law requires that employees be paid a minimum wage covering the entire time they are under an employer’s control. Cases such as these hinge on the magnitude of an employer’s control rather than whether an employee is required to work.
But the drivers argued that they should be paid the additional wages, which would be equal to the difference between Walmart’s “layover fee” and the minimum wage they would be entitled to under state law. The ruling covers employees who drove for Walmart from 2004 to 2015 and is the latest action in a case that stretches back over a decade.
The panel dismissed Walmart’s claims that its already well-paid drivers should have the disputed wages effectively rolled into their salaries.
Walmart told FreightWaves that “it is early since we just received the ruling and no decisions have been made as to next steps.”
The American Trucking Associations, which along with the California Trucking Association, CRST Expedited Inc. and U.S. Xpress Inc. [NYSE: USX] filed a petition in support of Walmart, was not immediately available to comment.
C mo
We are required to be in truck 10 hrs on layover.we must call in to get permission to leave.if not we could be terminated. Point is that the truck with contents in it is not secured. So we are security guards watching the freight. Security companies I would guess charge apx 80 per hr pay there gards 30 and we are with the freight for 4.20 per hr.i would think walmart would know that minimum wage would seem like a bargain. I would be fired for picking up a 50 cent candy bar and carrying it out of the store for stealing it.i believe the company is stealing the difference between minumin wedge and what they pay us. Just saying.
Rodrick Denton
Just pay them and keep the driver you have it is a small price for retention of experience
Frank
I drove for Walmart for 15 yrs. and Walmart has always thought that they are above GOD!! What they say goes without question, doesn’t matter what the state law is, if they don’t like it they override it plain and simple!!!!!! They are just trying to prove a point that they don’t have to do what the courts rule, they need to accept the court’s decision and pay their drivers and operate within the guidelines of the law.