The US Supreme Court kicks off its new term with a number of notable employment cases on the docket, including one that may have profound repercussions for how retail stores and warehouse operators set up their security systems. In Integrity Staffing Solutions Inc. et al. v. Jesse Busk et al, the justices will consider whether the Sixth Circuit correctly ruled that Amazon warehouse workers in Nevada can pursue state-law class-action claims that they were not properly compensated for time they spent clearing security screenings after clocking out.
McCarter partner Hugh Murray said that he does not expect the high court to take the case because it “seems to be essentially a question of Nevada law.” He said that he would be “a little surprised if the Supreme Court took this opportunity to weigh in again on essentially the same issue they weighed in [on] a couple years ago.”
He added, “If a federal law is construed as more limited, then some states will be expansive and some states will be restrictive [in their interpretations], and the variance in the laws between the states will be substantial, which isn’t great for employers. Even if the federal law is good for employers, the headaches of trying to comply with different laws across the country for multistate employers can create uncertainty and more problems.”