Southwest Airlines Hit With $100 Million Wage and Hour Lawsuit for Refusing to Pay Workers on a Weekly Basis

NEW YORK, Dec. 30, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Southwest Airlines claims that it has “Low fares and nothing to hide.” But it is hiding pervasive wage violations that harm hundreds of manual workers in New York State, including baggage and cargo handlers.

Accordingly, manual workers denied the weekly paychecks to which they are entitled from Southwest Airlines in violation of an unambiguous New York state statute have filed a lawsuit seeking $100 million in damages.

Attorneys at Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight filed suit against Southwest Airlines Co. today in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York for baggage and cargo handlers Richard Strain and David Garner, individually and on behalf of other employees of the company working in similar roles. The plaintiffs and proposed class are represented in the litigation by Michael Palmer, Co-Managing Partner of the firm’s New York office and a Co-Chair of its Wage and Hour Practice Group, and Andrew Melzer, a New York partner and the other Co-Chair of the firm’s Wage and Hour Practice Group.

Although New York Labor Law (NYLL) mandates manual workers must be paid weekly, Southwest Airlines refuses to do so, instead paying the two named plaintiffs and its other baggage and cargo handlers in New York on a bimonthly basis. “Southwest’s refusal to pay its manual workers every week is inconsistent with the state law’s purpose of protecting individuals who depend upon their regular wages for sustenance,” said Palmer. He continued, “No worker living paycheck to paycheck should have to wait to receive their earned wages.”

The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) has a similar requirement for promptly paying employees, and courts in the Second Circuit have analyzed claims for untimely payment under the FLSA and NYLL together. “It is egregious that Southwest continues to ignore these state and federal statutes to the detriment of its manual workers statewide,” Palmer added.

The lawsuit seeks monetary compensation for damages experienced by Strain, Garner, and other Southwest Airlines ramp agents, cargo agents, and luggage and cargo handlers who presently work or have worked for Southwest in New York State from 2018 through the final judgment on today’s complaint.

Both Strain and Garner are longtime New York residents. Strain has worked for Southwest as a ramp agent, loading and unloading baggage and cargo onto its planes in Islip, New York, since June 2008. Garner is also a ramp agent with similar responsibilities. He has worked for the company in Buffalo, New York since 2009.

Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Southwest Airlines operates throughout New York state, including Buffalo Niagara International Airport, Long Island McArthur Airport, LaGuardia Airport, and Albany International Airport. In October 2024, Southwest reported record third quarter operating revenues of $6.9 billion.

The Class Action Complaint asserts there are 100 or more members in the proposed plaintiff class who currently or previously worked as baggage and cargo handlers in New York. Strain, Garner, and the other class members spent or spend more than a quarter of their time performing physical tasks, including lifting, loading, and unloading baggage and cargo, cleaning airplane lavatories, and assisting with snow removal, which makes them manual workers under the NYLL.

Despite being covered by this statute, Southwest’s manual workers are not paid weekly. Although they depend on their compensation for necessities such as housing, food, and other basics every week, Southwest pays the workers only twice monthly. This deprives the plaintiffs and class members of the use of money to which they are legally entitled.

“By retaining the wages of its manual workers beyond the timeframes set by the NYLL, Southwest benefits and benefitted from delaying the payment of wages at the expense of the plaintiffs and class members,” said Melzer. “This illegal practice allows the airline to utilize those funds for its expenses or accrue interest in its business accounts, while its manual workers struggle to meet their basic household needs. This is exactly what the statute is designed to prevent,” he added.

The complaint lays out two specific claims in the class action – the airline’s failure to pay timely wages under New York Labor Law and its failure to issue prompt payment under the FLSA. Plaintiffs request certification of both claims as class or collective actions, and further seek designation of Strain and Garner as representatives of the New York class and of Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight as class counsel.

The plaintiffs, individually and on behalf of the class, also requested a declaratory judgment that the practices of Southwest are unlawful under the NYLL and the FLSA, along with other equitable and injunctive relief to remedy the company’s violations, including enjoining the airlines from continuing its unlawful practices; an award in excess of $100 million for liquidated damages for Southwest’s violations of both laws; all attorneys’ fees and litigation costs the manual workers incur; all penalties and civil action damages assessed by state and federal agencies; pre- and post-judgement interest; and any other legal and equitable relief the court finds necessary, just, and proper.

A jury trial is requested.

About Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight, LLP

Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight is a public interest and civil rights law firm with offices in New York, Washington, DC, San Francisco, Palo Alto, Nashville, and San Diego. The firm focuses on executive representation, wrongful termination, employment discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation, wage theft and overtime violations, whistleblower and qui tam, sexual violence, Title IX violations and victims’ rights, financial mismanagement and ERISA litigation, and Asian American litigation and finance matters. Our lawyers have recovered over $1 billion for our clients through many verdicts and settlements.

In 2024, Forbes named Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight Chairman and Co-Founder David Sanford to its inaugural list of America’s Top 200 Lawyers. The National Law Journal has selected Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight as Civil Rights Firm of the Year, and it has recognized the firm as both Employment Rights Firm of the Year and Human Rights Firm of the Year. Benchmark Litigation has named the firm Labor & Employment Firm of the Year, and Law360 has recognized the firm as Employment Practice Group of the Year.

For the latest news about Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight, visit the firm’s newsroom or follow the firm on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Twitter.

Media Contact: Jamie Moss, newsPRos, at 201-788-0142 or [email protected].

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