McDonald’s defeats class certification and PAGA claims in statewide California class action wage and hour case

Client(s) McDonald's Restaurants of California, Inc.

In a series of wins, Jones Day client McDonald’s Corporation defeated class action and PAGA claims brought against the company in a California-wide wage and hour lawsuit. Plaintiffs moved to certify a class of all hourly, non-managerial employees in California, as well as subclasses related to alleged violations of overtime, meal periods, rest breaks, premium pay, wage statements, and uniform expense indemnification. After extensive briefing and oral argument, on August 2, 2016, McDonald’s successfully defeated class certification as to all but one of plaintiffs’ claims, relating to daily overtime on overnight shifts. Judge Ann I. Jones of the Los Angeles Superior Court also granted McDonald’s motion to strike plaintiffs’ experts and McDonald’s motion to strike certain belatedly-raised class theories.

McDonald’s subsequently moved to strike plaintiffs’ related PAGA claims as unmanageable. In its motion, McDonald’s argued that, to the extent that Plaintiffs’ PAGA claims were based on the same claims that the court had refused to certify, those PAGA claims could not be manageably tried on a classwide basis for the same reasons the court denied certification. After over two hours of oral argument on December 14, 2016, Judge Jones took the matter under submission. The next day, she issued her order, rejecting Plaintiffs’ contention that PAGA claims were not subject to manageability limitations and granting McDonald’s motion to strike.

Sanchez v. McDonald's Restaurants of California, Case No. BC499888 (Super Ct. Los Angeles Cty., Cal.)