Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, SUPREME COURT NEWS—High Court denies review in four employment cases, (Mar 26, 2025)

By Jonathan Anderson

The petitions raised questions implicating provisions of the NLRA, ADA, and FLSA, and one also challenged deference to the NLRB citing Loper Bright.

In a set of orders on March 24, 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States denied petitions for writs of certiorari, including in four employment cases. The petitions, involving cases from the Sixth, Eighth, and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals, raised questions implicating the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). One of the cases also challenged the Ninth Circuit’s deference to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) citing the Supreme Court’s decision in Loper Bright Enterprises, Inc. v. Raimondo, Secretary of Commerce, 603 U.S. ___ (2024), which overruled the Chevron doctrine.

Quickway Transportation v. NLRB. Quickway Transportation, Inc. sought review of a decision by the Sixth Circuit upholding a determination by the NLRB in an unfair labor practice proceeding. The NLRB found that the company’s cessation of operations at a Louisville facility violated the NLRA; that the company failed to bargain over the cessation of operations and resulting effects in violation of the NLRA; and that the company threatened and interrogated employees in violation of the NLRA. Quickway argued that substantial evidence did not support the NLRB’s findings, and that the board’s remedial order imposed an undue burden on it and exceeded the board’s statutory authority. The NLRB opposed the petition for a writ of certiorari (Docket No. 24-651).

Union Pacific v. DeGeer. Union Pacific Railroad Company sought review of a decision by the Eighth Circuit that found an employee’s ADA claims against the company were not time barred. The employee believed he was a member of a class action with other employees in an ADA lawsuit against the company, but when the class was decertified, the employee filed suit individually, believing that his claims were tolled under American Pipe & Construction Co. v. Utah, 414 U.S. 538 (1974). The district court ruled that the employee was not a member of the class and thus dismissed the employee’s individual claims as untimely. However, the appeals court held that the definition of the class members in the certification order did not unambiguously exclude the employee, thereby entitling the employee to American Pipe tolling (Docket No. 24-610).

Valley Health System, et al. v. NLRB. Valley Health System, LLC and Valley Hospital Medical Center, Inc. sought review of two decisions by the Ninth Circuit over whether an employer may unilaterally cease union dues checkoff after the expiration of a collective bargaining agreement. The hospitals argued that the Ninth Circuit erred by deferring to the NLRB’s interpretation of the NLRA in violation of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Loper Bright Enterprises, Inc. v. Raimondo, Secretary of Commerce, 603 U.S. ___ (2024), which overruled the Chevron doctrine. The NLRB opposed the petition for a writ of certiorari (Docket No. 24-370).

Silloway, et al. v. San Francisco. Staff nurses employed by the City and County of San Francisco sought review of a decision by the Ninth Circuit over the proper application of the FLSA salary basis test for exemption from overtime pay. The panel ruled in favor of the employer, concluding that the proper focus of the salary basis test is whether an employee receives a predetermined amount of compensation on a weekly or less frequent basis, irrespective of any promises made in an employment contract. The City and County of San Francisco waived its right to respond to the petition (Docket No. 24-785).

Companies: Quickway Transportation, Inc.; Union Pacific Railroad Company; Valley Health System, LLC; Valley Hospital Medical Center, Inc.; City and County of San Francisco

News: SupremeCourtNews LaborNews WageHour Exemptions Bargaining Procedure DisabilityDiscrimination