Rivera v. Peri & Sons Farms, Inc., No. 11-17365 (9th Cir. 2013)
Annotate this CasePlaintiffs, farmworkers who are Mexican citizens, filed suit against Peri & Sons, a Nevada corporation that produces, harvests, and packages onions. Plaintiffs alleged that the corporation violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), 29 U.S.C. 201 et seq. Deferring to the DOL's interpretation, the court concluded that the district court erred in ruling that the corporation was not required to reimburse its employees during the first week of work for inbound travel and immigration expenses to the extent that such expenses lowered their compensation below the minimum wage. The court further concluded, inter alia, that the district court erred in concluding that the farmworkers had not pled their breach of contract claims with sufficient specificity where such allegations were sufficient to give the corporation fair notice and to make plaintiffs' breach of contract claims plausible. Accordingly, the court reversed the district court's dismissal of the farmworkers' FLSA claims to the extent that they accrued within three years of filing; reversed its dismissal of their breach of contract claims; affirmed the dismissal of their claims under Nevada Revised Statutes 608.140; and reversed the dismissal of their other statutory and constitutional claims to the extent they accrued within two years of filing. The court remanded for further proceedings.
Court Description: Labor Law. The panel affirmed in part and reversed in part the district court’s dismissal of claims of Mexican temporary farmworkers under the Fair Labor Standards Act and relevant state law. The panel reversed the district court’s dismissal of the farmworkers’ FLSA claims to the extent that they accrued within three years of filing suit, reversed its dismissal of their breach of contract claims, affirmed its dismissal of their claims under Nev. Rev. Stat. § 608.140, and reversed its dismissal of their other state statutory and constitutional claims to the extent that they accrued within two years of filing. The defendant agricultural employer hired the farmworkers through the H-2A program of the United States Department of Labor. The panel held that in light of the DOL’s regulatory interpretation, the employer was subject to FLSA regulations requiring reimbursement of certain expenses during each employee’s first week of work. Deferring to the DOL’s interpretation, the panel held that travel and immigration expenses incurred by the farmworkers were covered by the FLSA regulations because these expenses primarily benefitted the employer. The panel held that the farmworkers stated a claim for breach of contract under Nevada law. As to claims under Nevada wage-and-hour laws that largely duplicated the farmworkers’ claims under the FLSA and their claims for breach of contract, the panel held that Nevada law would follow federal law on claims under Nev. Rev. Stat. §§ 608.250 and 608.260, as well as the Nevada Constitution. The panel held that the farmworkers stated claims under §§ 608.040 and 608.050 for failure to pay wages due under their employment contracts. The panel affirmed the dismissal of claims for attorneys’ fees under § 608.140 for failure to allege a demand. The panel held that the district court was correct to address statute of limitations issues because these affirmative defenses were apparent on the face of the complaint. The panel affirmed the dismissal of state constitutional claims to the extent that they accrued more than two years before the farmworkers filed suit. The panel held that because the farmworkers sufficiently alleged willfulness, the district court erred in applying a two- rather than a three-year statute of limitations to the FLSA claims. The panel affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded for proceedings not inconsistent with its opinion.
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