Amazon, American Airlines hit with lawsuits over paid military leave denial

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Amazon, American Airlines lawsuits overview: 

• Who: James P. Scanlan and Carla Reiner filed a class action lawsuit against American Airlines Group Inc., while Yasmine Mahone and Dain Olson filed a class action lawsuit against Amazon.com Inc. 
• Why: The class action lawsuits claim violations of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act. 
• Where: The class action lawsuits were filed independently in Pennsylvania and Washington federal courts. 

A pair of class action lawsuits filed independently against American Airlines and Amazon claim the companies denied service members their proper military leave pay. 

Plaintiffs James P. Scanlan and Carla Reiner claim American Airlines failed to pay them for their military leave in what they argue was an alleged violation of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). 

Last month, a federal judge dismissed Scanlan and Reiner’s wage claims, first filed in September 2018, with the military reservists announcing that they will appeal the decision. 

Scanlan and Reiner argue American Airlines violated the USERRA by failing to compensate them for time spent doing mandated military training, while allegedly simultaneously paying its civilian employees for time off due to reasons such as grieving or jury duty, according to the American Airlines lawsuit.

The judge ruled that military leave differs from short-term paid leave given to non-military reservists, determining military reservists miss more time than civilians on leave would. 

Amazon lawsuit claims company allegedly fired employees for taking time off for military leave

Meanwhile, Plaintiffs Yasmine Mahone and Dain Olson, service members and former employees of Amazon, accuse the company of violating the USERRA by firing them for taking time off for military leave. 

A federal judge recently dismissed several of the Amazon lawsuit’s claims, ruling that many of the claims originally brought in May “lack clarity.” 

“Plaintiffs’ claims in the first amended complaint suffer from several defects,” U.S. District Judge Marsha J. Pechman writes in her order. “Neither plaintiff has standing to pursue claims for reemployment, injunctive or prospective declaratory relief.” 

In similar news, in October 2021, a judge granted final approval to a $10 million Walmart settlement that resolved claims the company failed to properly pay employees while they were away on military leave. 

Have you been discriminated against by an employer due to your military status? Let us know in the comments! 

The Amazon and American Airlines class action lawsuits are Mahone, et al. v. Amazon.com Inc., Case No. 2:22-cv-00594, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, and Scanlan v. American Airlines Group Inc., Case No. 2:18-cv-04040, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 

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