About 15,000 drivers across the United States have filed lawsuits against FedEx, claiming the logistics giant owes them overtime wages as a joint employer. These legal actions, brought in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts federal courts, mark the latest chapter in an ongoing dispute over worker classification and wage rights. The lawsuits follow the decertification of collective actions earlier this year, prompting individual claims to be pursued.

Collective Actions Disbanded, Individual Claims Filed

The five new complaints, one of which spans 3,128 pages due to its nearly 12,000 plaintiffs, assert that FedEx acted as a joint employer alongside intermediary employers. Until recently, these drivers' claims were part of two collective actions under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. However, in April, a federal judge in Boston disbanded one collective action, citing differences in pay practices among the workers that prevented them from proceeding as a group. The two lead plaintiffs of that collective action settled their claims for $20,000 each, plus attorney fees, just last week.

Following the Massachusetts decertification, drivers involved in a similar collective action in Pennsylvania federal court also agreed to decertify and pursue their claims individually. These actions led to the filing of the five new complaints this week.

FedEx Sued By 15K Drivers : FedEx’s Control Over Drivers

The lawsuits allege that, although the drivers were directly employed by independent service providers (ISPs), FedEx controlled key aspects of their work, making it a joint employer under the FLSA. The drivers, represented by Lichten & Liss Riordan PC, claim they worked full-time, delivering packages exclusively for FedEx, while wearing FedEx uniforms and using vehicles branded with FedEx’s logos.

The complaints accuse FedEx of micromanaging drivers' work, dictating the volume of package pickups and deliveries, and even influencing how drivers performed their tasks. This control, the drivers argue, makes FedEx liable for their unpaid overtime.

FedEx’s Defense and Legal Strategy

FedEx, however, has maintained that the ISPs were solely responsible for employing the drivers and ensuring compliance with wage-and-hour laws. A FedEx spokesperson, Austin Kember, indicated that the company disagrees with the new individual lawsuits, stating, “FedEx looks forward to discussing such issues with the court.”

Shannon Liss-Riordan, counsel for the drivers, counters that FedEx's employment system is designed to sidestep its obligations under wage laws. “We look forward to showing that FedEx has continued to avoid its obligations to its employee drivers by setting up a three-tiered employment system that FedEx thinks allows it to deny it is their joint employer,” Liss-Riordan said.

FedEx Sued By 15K Drivers : Ongoing Legal Battle

This legal battle is the latest in a series of disputes over FedEx's employment practices, particularly its use of independent contractors and ISPs. The drivers’ claims against FedEx, now splintered into thousands of individual lawsuits, seek to hold the company accountable for overtime wages they allege are owed under federal law.