Perez v. U-Haul Co. of CA

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Plaintiffs were hired by U-Haul as customer service representatives and, as a condition of their employment, they signed a mandatory arbitration agreement. Plaintiffs filed a representative action under the Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 (PAGA), Lab. Code, 2698 et seq., alleging that U-Haul violated several provisions of the Labor Code, including overtime and meal break requirements. The trial court denied U-Haul's motion to compel plaintiffs to individually arbitrate whether they qualified as "aggrieved employees" and thus had standing to pursue a PAGA claim. The court concluded that the trial court correctly determined that plaintiffs are not required to individually arbitrate whether they qualify as aggrieved employees where whether plaintiffs have standing to pursue a PAGA claim is not an issue that falls within the scope of the arbitration agreement; even if the agreement does require plaintiffs to arbitrate whether they have standing to bring a PAGA claim, the provision is unenforceable under California law; and the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), 9 U.S.C. 1 et seq., does not preempt state law rules applicable to PAGA claims. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment. View "Perez v. U-Haul Co. of CA" on Justia Law