18th Annual Workplace Class Action Report - 2022 Edition

36 Annual Workplace Class Action Litigation Report: 2022 Edition 8. $22 million – In Re JCK Legacy Co. , Bankr. Case No. 20-BK-10418 (S.D.N.Y. April 7, 2021) (preliminary approval granted for a class action settlement of wage & hour claims alleging newspaper couriers were misclassified as independent contractors instead of employees). 9. $17 million – Kinkead, et al. v. Humana, Inc. , Case No. 15-CV-1637 (D. Conn. March 26, 2021) (final approval granted for a class action settlement of wage & hour claims alleging home healthcare workers were not properly compensated for overtime hours worked). 10. $15.8 million – Fleming, et al. v. Matco Tools Corp. , Case No. 19-CV-463 (N.D. Cal. Dec. 13, 2021) (settlement approval sought for wage & hour class actions over misclassification of independent contractors). Settlements In Private Plaintiff ERISA Class Actions For ERISA class actions, the monetary value of the top 10 private plaintiff settlements entered into or paid in 2021 totaled $411.05 million. This amounts to an increase over the 2020 total of $380.10 million and the 2019 total of $376.35 million. 1. $100 million – Dignity Health 2. $79 million – Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb, Inc. 3. $60 million – Raytheon Co. 4. $39.2 million – Reliance Trust Co. 5. $30 million – Prospect Chartercare, LLC 6. $28.5 million – FMR LLC 7. $25 million – OSF HealthCare System 8. $21.6 million – WAWA, Inc. 9. $14 million – John Hancock Life Insurance Co. 10. $13.75 million – Walgreens Co. The largest ERISA settlements primarily involved disputes over breaches of fiduciary duty and various theories of mismanagement. 1. $100 million – Rollins, et al. v. Dignity Health , Case No. 13-CV-1450 (N.D. Cal. Oct. 19, 2021) (preliminary approval granted for a settlement of an ERISA class action alleging the health system improperly claimed the “church plan” exemption under the ERISA leading to the underfunding of workers’ pension plans). 2. $79 million – Ferguson, et al. v. Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb, Inc. , Case No. 17-CV-6685 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 8, 2021) (preliminary approval sought for a settlement of an ERISA class action alleging mismanagement of workers’ 401(k) retirement fund). 3. $60 million – Cruz, et al. v. Raytheon Co. , Case 19-CV-11425 (D. Mass. Feb. 23, 2021) (preliminary approval granted for settlement of an ERISA class action filed by retirees accusing the company of using out-of-date pension data to calculate benefits).