Jackson Hewitt class action alleges company suppresses wages through hiring restrictions, no-poach agreements

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Jackson Hewitt no-poach agreements class action lawsuit overview: 

• Who: Jessica Robinson, Stacey Jennings, and Priscilla McGowan have filed a class action lawsuit against Jackson Hewitt and Tax Services of America. 
• Why: Robinson, Jennings, and McGowan claim Jackson Hewitt has been illegally conspiring with Tax Services of America to not hire each other’s workers in order to suppress their wages. 
• Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in New Jersey federal court. 

Jackson Hewitt illegally conspired with Tax Services of America to not hire each other’s workers, a new class action lawsuit alleges. 

Plaintiffs Jessica Robinson, Stacey Jennings, and Priscilla McGowan—all former tax preparers—claim Jackson Hewitt conspired with Tax Services of America in order to “suppress wages to artificially low levels.” 

Jackson Hewitt was forced to remove its written “No-Poach” clause from its franchise documents after it was sued by the Attorney General of the State of Washington, according to the Jackson Hewitt class action. 

Robinson, Jennings, and McGowan argue, however, that Jackson Hewitt has continued to “operate under a ‘corporate culture’ that prohibited franchisees from hiring Corporate Jackson Hewitt employees.” 

“Plaintiffs thus bring this case as private attorneys general to pick up where the Washington Attorney General left off—to seek damages for themselves and the Class,” states the Jackson Hewitt class action. 

Jackson Hewitt accused of violating federal antitrust laws

Robinson, Jennings, and McGowan—who are now seeking class certification for the complaint—want to represent a nationwide class of Jackson Hewitt’s corporate store employees who were injured by the alleged conspiracy. 

Robinson, Jennings, and McGowan claim Jackson Hewitt is violating the Sherman Antitrust Act and the Clayton Antitrust Act. 

A separate class action lawsuit was filed against Jackson Hewitt in 2017 over claims that one of the company’s franchisees was appropriating his identity in order to claim fraudulent refunds from the IRS.

Are you a corporate employee of Jackson Hewitt who has had your wage suppressed as the result of a no-poach agreement ? Let us know in the comments! 

The plaintiffs are represented by Hartley LLP, Paul LLP, Gustafson Gluek PLLC, Adhoot & Wolfson, PC, Lite Depalma Greenberg & Afanador, LLC, Freed Kanner London & Millen LLC, and Joseph Saveri Law Firm, LLP. 

The Jackson Hewitt no-poach agreements class action lawsuit is Robinson, et al. v. Jackson Hewitt Inc., et al., Case No. 2:19-cv-09066, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

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