The Supreme Court will hear argument on whether arbitration provisions in employment agreements which waive class actions are a violation of the National Labor Relations Act ("NLRA"). The three cases are as follows:
In Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis (USSC 16-285), which we previously reported on June 6, 2016, the Seventh Circuit held a provision of an employment agreement mandating that wage-and-hour claims could be brought only through individual arbitration and that employees waived collective action was prohibited under Section 7 of the NLRA.
In Ernst & Young, et al. v. Morris, et al. (USSC 16-300), which we previously reported on September 12, 2016, the Ninth Circuit similarly held that the waiver in the Ernst & Young employment agreement violated Sections 7 and 8 of the NLRA.
In NLRB v. Murphy Oil USA, Inc., et al. (USSC 16-307), which we previously reported on September 6, 2016, the Fifth Circuit held the opposite, finding that requiring employees to sign arbitration agreements requiring them to resolve employment-related claims through individual arbitration and waiving their rights to pursue a class arbitration to be valid.
The three cases were consolidated and a total of one hour is allotted for oral argument.
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