Lawsuits Pile Up Against Aerospace Companies Accused of Secret No-Poaching Deals

By Jessy Edwards | January 4, 2022

Category: Labor & Employment

Meeting of Aerospace Engineers Working On Unmanned Aerial Vehicle / Drone Prototype — (Photo Credit: Gorodenkoff/Shuttestock)

Aerospace Engineers No-Poaching Class Action Lawsuits Overview:

Who: Engineers who worked at major aerospace companies, including QueEST Global, Belcan, Cyient, Agilis Engineering, Parametric Solutions, Inc. and Pratt & Whitney, are suing the companies for violation of antitrust laws.
Why: The engineers say the defendants conducted an illegal conspiracy to restrict the hiring and recruiting of engineers working on aerospace projects among their companies.
Where: Three lawsuits have been filed in Connecticut that seek to represent affected engineers nationwide.

Lawsuits are piling up against a group of companies in the aerospace industry that allegedly made a secret “no-poaching” deal that restricted the hiring of engineers working on aerospace projects in order to improve their own bottom lines.

Three new class action lawsuits have been filed in a Connecticut federal court in the past three weeks against aerospace companies QuEST Global, Belcan, Cyient, Agilis Engineering, Parametric Solutions, Inc. and Pratt & Whitney (P&W), alleging violations of antitrust laws.

The lawsuits, filed by engineers who worked at the companies, follow close behind another near-identical complaint filed Dec. 14 in the same court.

The engineers claim the companies had long-running agreements between those in the “highest levels” to restrict the recruiting and hiring of engineers in the industry.

Called “no-poaching” agreements, this alleged illegal conspiracy worked to suppress the wages of workers, making it difficult for them to pursue higher compensation at a competing company.

“Defendants entered into and maintained this No-Poach Agreement at least as early as 2011 and continued it until at least 2019,” the plaintiffs say. “Throughout this time, and indeed until just recently, Defendants concealed their No-Poach Agreement from their employees and independent contractors.”

DOJ Unveiled “No-Poach Agreement” During Partial Unsealing Of Criminal Antitrust Action

The No-Poach Agreement was brought to light by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) on Dec. 9 when it partially unsealed a criminal antitrust action against Mahesh Patel, the director of global engineering sourcing at P&W.

In it, the DOJ alleged that Patel conspired with the other defendants to restrict the hiring and recruiting of engineers “with the goal and effect of suppressing engineers’ compensation wages.”

The plaintiffs, all engineers, are suing for violations of the Sherman Act and seeking treble damages, fees, costs, interest and a jury trial. They’re looking to represent anyone who worked at one or more of the companies as engineers from Jan. 2011 through the time the no-poach agreement ended.

If you’re an aerospace engineer or other skilled worker in the aerospace industry that was employed 2011-2019, you may be entitled to compensation. Seek justice by joining this aerospace industry antitrust class action lawsuit investigation.

The plaintiffs are represented by David S. Golub, Jonathan M. Levine, Steven L. Bloch and Ian W. Sloss of Silver Golub & Teitell LLP.

The Aerospace Engineers No-Poaching Class Action Lawsuits are Conroy et al. v. Agilis Engineering et al., Case No. 3:21-cv-01659; Kintz v. Agilis Engineering et al., Case No. 3:21-cv-01674; Boodram v. Agilis Engineering et al., Case No. 3:21-cv-01674; and Renteria v. Agilis Engineering et al., Case No. 3:21-cv-01736 in the U.S. District Court District of Connecticut.