NLRB ALJs Invalidate Class Action Waivers

In two recent decisions, National Labor Relations Board Administrative Law Judges held employees' class action waivers invalid because of the NLRB's decision in D.R. Horton, Inc., which held that a waiver of an employee's right to participate in a class or collective action that is obtained as a condition of employment violates Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act.

One of the two recent decisions involved a class action on behalf of a group of Convergys Corporation call center representatives for unpaid overtime.  The lawsuit alleges that the representatives regularly spent time working "off-the-clock" both before and after their shifts.  Convergys moved to strike the class and collective action allegations on the basis of class waivers that the plaintiffs had signed when they applied for employment with the company.  Convergys sought to distinguish D.R. Horton on the grounds that the class waivers at issue in its case had been signed when the plaintiffs