California Truck Driver Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Schneider National Carriers

A group of truck drivers have filed a proposed California truck driver class action lawsuit against Schneider National Carriers Inc.

Lead plaintiff Will Robles has filed this proposed California truck driver class action lawsuit on behalf of himself and other truck drivers, both current and former, that are similarly situated.

According to Robles, business-related expenses that should have been paid by Schneider, such as income taxes, Social Security taxes, Medicare insurance, unemployment insurance and payments for workers comp were not made by Schneider due to its improper classification of its employees as independent contractors.

Robles worked as a truck driver for Schneider from March 2009 to October 2015 and was classified as an independent contractor at all times. However, Robles states that he was willfully classified as an independent contractor when he should have been considered an employee.

“To perform their job duties, the PLAINTIFF and other Truck Drivers performed work subject to the DEFENDANT in that DEFENDANT had the authority to exercise complete control of the work performed in the manner and means in which the work was performed,” Robles stated.

In cases where an employer dictates much of the work that is done, this is typically considered an employer/employee relationship and is not reflective of independent contractor status.

Robles stated, “To avoid the payment of these legally proscribed Business Related Expenses to the fullest extent possible, SCHNEIDER devised a scheme to place the responsibility for the payment of these costs and expenses of SCHNEIDER on the shoulders of the PLAINTIFF and other Truck Drivers classified as independent contractors.”

Robles brought the California truck driver class action lawsuit against Schneider “in order to collect the wages due them as employees of SCHNEIDER, the cost of their training, the cost of the employer’s share of payments to the federal and state governments for income taxes, Social Security taxes, Medicare insurance, unemployment insurance and payments for workers’ compensation insurance, plus penalties and interest.”

Additionally, Robles said that he and other truck drivers “were willfully misclassified as independent contractors and were charged fees, and had deductions from their wages for various purposes, including but not limited to, for goods, materials, services, government licenses, repairs, equipment maintenance, and/or fines arising from PLAINTIFF’s and other Truck Drivers’ employment with SCHNEIDER…”

The proposed California truck driver class action lawsuit has brought forth six counts against Schneider National Carriers including unfair competition in violation of California Business & Professional Code, failure to pay minimum wages, failure to provide accurate itemized statements, failure to provide wages when do, failure to reimburse employees for required expenses and illegal deductions from wages.

In addition to seeking class certification, on on behalf of himself and others, Robles is seeking to have Schneider stop engaging from its allegedly unlawful conduct, requiring Schneider to pay minimum wages that were unlawfully withheld, disgorge its profits for restitution to be made available to the him and the proposed class.

Robles is also seeking certification of a California labor subclass, and that subclass is seeking compensatory damages, payment of wages, actual damages, and reimbursement of on-the-job expenses. He also seeks an award of interest, attorneys’ fees and costs and any additional relief as deemed proper by the court.

Filing a California Truck Driver Class Action Lawsuit

If you are a truck driver in California who is currently classified as an independent contractor but you believe you should be classified as an employee and should receive all of the benefits related to such a classification, you may be eligible to take legal action.

The California Truck Driver Class Action Lawsuit is Robles v. Schneider National Carriers Inc., Case No. RIC 1612222, in the Superior Court for the State of California in and for the County of Riverside.

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