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California Suit Alleges Schneider Shorted Drivers on Wages, Mileage, Benefits

A suit filed in U.S. District Court in California in July on behalf of regional drivers employed by Schneider National Carriers says the carrier failed to pay all wages, mileage, and benefits required by state labor laws

by Staff
November 12, 2010
2 min to read


A suit filed in U.S. District Court in California in July on behalf of regional drivers employed by Schneider National Carriers says the carrier failed to pay all wages, mileage, and benefits required by state labor laws.
The drivers claim they were required to work long hours with few breaks and for pay that failed to adequately compensate them for all wages due.

According to the complaint, drivers were obligated to wait for customers and new assignments without proper compensation for their time. The company also denied drivers compensation for time spent inspecting vehicles and completing daily paperwork.

In addition to the alleged failure to pay its drivers proper wages for non-driving work time, Schneider National allegedly paid mileage rates based on computerized estimates that routinely fell below the actual distances driven en route, the lawsuit states.

U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey S. White recently appointed attorneys from Hagens Berman to serve as lead counsel for the proposed class of current and former regional drivers in the class-action lawsuit against Schneider National.

Swift Too

Hagens Berman has also filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of all employee truck drivers against Swift Transportation on similar grounds. The claim alleges the company has, "for years" shortchanged drivers for the actual miles they drive from location to location. The suit claims that Swift ignores reports from drivers showing the actual miles driven, and instead uses an artificial calculation that credits drivers for significantly fewer miles.

Schneider Mechanics Claim they were Underpaid

In a separate action filed in February in California Superior Court, a group of current and former mechanics alleges Schneider failed to provide employees with overtime compensation, rest breaks, and accurate wage statements as required by California law. Representing employees of the transportation and trucking company, Hagens Berman filed a class-action lawsuit claiming Schneider National violated the state's labor laws which require employees to be paid overtime wage rates when working more than eight hours per day and more than 40 hours per week.

When contacted for comment, a company spokesperson said, "As a privately held company it is Schneider National's policy to refrain from commenting on matters that are pending litigation."



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