By Katie Baiocchi
On January 25, 2017, the Fourth Circuit published Marlon Hall v. DIRECTV, LLC, a civil case. Plaintiffs Marlon Hall, John Wood, Alix Pierre, Kashi Walker and John Albrecht (“Plaintiffs”) appealed the order granting defendants’ DIRECTV, LLC, DIRECTSAT USA, LLC and DIRECTV, INC. (“Defendants”) motion to dismiss under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). Plaintiffs alleged that defendants were joint employers and therefore are jointly and severally liable for any violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The Fourth Circuit found the district court relied on out-of-circuit authority that has been rejected in the Fourth Circuit in analyzing the relationship between the parties. The district court also failed to construe plaintiffs’ allegations liberally as required by a motion to dismiss. Accordingly the Fourth Circuit reversed and remanded the case.
Facts and Procedural History
Defendant DIRECTV employs technicians through the DIRECTV “Provider Network.” Each plaintiff alleged that between 2007 to 2014 they worked as a technician for defendant, an intermediary provider, a subcontractor, or a combination of all three. Defendant DIRECTSAT enforced the hiring criteria of DIRECTV for technicians. DIRECTV also provided a centralized work-assignment system, and regulated and audited personnel files. Plaintiffs were required to wear DIRECTV uniforms, carry DIRECTV identification cards, and display the DIRECTV logo on their vehicles. Technicians who did not meet DIRECTV hiring criteria could not install or repair DIRECTV equipment. Plaintiffs claim that they each regularly worked in excess of forty hours per week without receiving overtime pay while working as technicians. Plaintiffs specifically allege that the defendants qualify as joint employers and their failure to provide overtime pay violated FLSA overtime and minimum wage requirements. Defendants each moved to dismiss plaintiffs’ complaint pursuant to F.R.C.P. 12(b)(6). The district court granted this motion in its entirety because they concluded that the Complaint did not allege facts sufficient to establish that defendant DIRECTV jointly employed plaintiffs.
The Fourth Circuit reviewed the district court’s dismissal de novo and accepted as true all the factual allegations contained in the complaint and drew all reasonable inference in favor of plaintiffs.
The District Court Applied an Improper Legal Test for Determining Joint Employment Under the FLSA
Under the FLSA, 29 C.F.R. § 791.2(a), “joint employment” exists when “employment by one employer is not completely disassociated from employment by the other employer(s).” Courts are split on the appropriate test for distinguishing separate employment from joint employment in relation to the FLSA. The district court’s analysis was flawed because it concluded that a worker must be an employee as to each putative joint employer when considered separately for the entities to constitute joint employment under the FLSA. Additionally, the district court relied on the test no longer employed by the Fourth Circuit in determining joint employment of the plaintiffs.
Under the Fourth Circuit two-step framework for determining whether a defendant may be liable for an alleged FLSA violation under the joint employment theory the court must first determine whether the defendant and one or more entities shared, agreed to allocate responsibility for, or otherwise co-determined the key terms and conditions of plaintiffs’ work. The second step relies heavily upon the answer to the first part of the analysis and asks whether a worker was an employee or independent contractor under FLSA. The district court erred in considering the second step before the first.
The Fourth Circuit determined that under the first part of the two-part framework that the allegations sufficiently demonstrate defendants were not completely disassociated. The district court erred by failing to follow the new standard employed by the Fourth Circuit to determine joint employment. The Fourth Circuit has held that the fundamental question is whether the entities are “not completely disassociated” with respect to the worker. The Fourth Circuit identified a non-exhaustive list of six factors to assist lower courts in determining if joint employment exists. The court emphasized that no single factor is determinative.
The Fourth Circuit also found that under the second part of the two-part framework the plaintiffs were employees rather than independent contractors. In focusing on the economic realities of the relationship between the defendants and plaintiffs the Fourth Circuit found that the plaintiffs were economically dependent on the defendants.
The District Court Misapplied the Plausibility Standard by Subjecting Plaintiffs to Evidentiary Burdens Inapplicable at the Pleading Stage
Plaintiffs’ factual allegations establish that defendants jointly determined the key terms of plaintiffs’ conditions of employment. Per the complaint defendant DIRECTV was the principal client of the other defendants. Defendant DIRECTV had the authority to direct, control and supervise the plaintiff’s day-to-day job duties. Defendant DIRECTV had specific installation procedures implemented and controlled the uniforms and identification of technicians. The complaint is also replete with allegations that DIRECTV had control over hiring, firing and compensation. The Fourth Circuit found that at this stage of litigation the allegations are sufficient to make a plausible claim that defendants were not completely disassociated.
Conclusion
The Fourth Circuit reversed and remanded the consolidated cases for further proceedings consistent with the opinion because the district court relied on out-of-circuit authority that had been rejected in the Fourth Circuit. Furthermore, the Fourth Circuit found the district court failed to construe plaintiffs’ allegations liberally as a motion to dismiss requires.
