$30M Apple mandatory bag check class action settlement granted final approval

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Update: 

• A California judge approved a settlement of more than $30 million to end claims Apple Inc. illegally forced employees to submit to off-the-clock security bag checks when they left the workplace after or during their shifts.
• U.S. District Judge William Alsup granted final approval of the $30.4 million deal Aug. 13. Class members will be compensated at about $2.95 net value per shift, the settlement says. About $9 million will go to lawyers’ fees.
• A group of employees filed the Apple class action lawsuit back in 2013, accoriding to Bloomberg, and accused the company of violating California law by not paying them for the time spent waiting for their bags to be checked.
• “The court finds that the settlement offers significant monetary recovery to all participating settlement class members and finds that such recovery is fair, reasonable and adequate when balanced against the risk of further litigation related to damages issues,” Judge Alsup says in his approval.

Apple bag check class action lawsuit overview:

• Why: Apple agreed to pay nearly $30 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging the company violated California law by failing to pay employees for the time it took to search their bags. 
• Who: Apple employees were subjected to unpaid security bag checks at Apple stores in California.
• Where: The Apple bag check class action lawsuit was filed in California federal court.

(Jan. 14, 2022)

 Apple Inc. has reportedly reached a $29.9 million settlement with employees who were required to submit to off-the-clock security bag checks when they left the workplace after or during their shifts.

The Apple class action lawsuit was filed back in 2013 by a group of Apple employees who say the company violated California law by not paying them for the time spent waiting for their bags to be checked.

The Apple security bag check lawsuit was dismissed in 2015, but the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals revived the case in 2020 and ruled Apple must pay employees for the time it took to complete a security bag check.

Apple argued the security bag checks were to ensure workers were not stealing electronic goods by hiding them in their bags. The tech giant said that employees could simply choose not to bring bags to work if they did not like the security bag check policy.

Apple reportedly stopped its bag check policy in December 2015.

Who is included in the Apple bag check settlement?

Class members of the proposed Apple security bag check settlement include 14,683 workers who were employed at Apple stores in California. Each class member will reportedly receive an average settlement payment of $1,286.

The Apple settlement documents note class members were owed about $800 in unpaid wages on average, assuming they underwent five minutes of unpaid security search time each day they worked. 

The Apple security bag check class action settlement was preliminarily approved Dec. 28, 2021.

Eligible class members will not be required to submit a claim form to receive their Apple settlement payment, according to the class action settlement documents.

The deadline for class members to object to or exclude themselves from the Apple bag check settlement is Apr. 26. A final approval hearing will be held July 7.

More information about the Apple class action settlement is available at AppleBagCheckSettlement.com.

Do you think Apple employees should be paid for the time spent undergoing a security bag check? Let us know in the comments below!

Class Members are represented by Lee Shalov, Brett Gallaway and Jason Scott Giaimo of McLaughlin & Stern LLP and Kimberly Kralowec and Kathleen Styles Rogers of Kralowec Law PC.

The Apple security bag check class action lawsuit is Amanda Frlekin, et al. v. Apple Inc., Case No. 13-cv-03451, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, San Francisco.

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