Employment Challenges in Transportation and Logistics: Arbitration Programs, Independent Contractors, and Federal and State Regulations in 2022
Evolving standards for the transportation worker exemption under the Federal Arbitration Act, independent contractor tests, and preemption of state employment rules

Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
- work Practice Area
Employment and Workers Comp
- event Date
Wednesday, April 20, 2022
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
-
This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
This CLE course will guide in-house counsel and employment practitioners on navigating the unique employment issues in the transportation and logistics sector. The panelists will discuss how to advise clients on worker classification, arbitration agreements, and regulatory compliance.
Faculty

Mr. Massiatte focuses his practice on labor and employment matters, including employee relations, employee benefits, and obligations arising in connection with mergers and acquisitions. He also counsels clients on litigation, commercial transactions, corporate compliance and ethics, and risk management matters and he frequently conducts high-level internal investigations. Mr. Massiatte provides advice and counseling to entities of all sizes, ranging from Fortune 100 companies to startups, on a wide range of business and employment-related issues. He regularly works with employers to review and update employment policies and to provide training on a wide range of topics.

Mr. Chemers has significant experience defending employers against wage-and-hour claims, ranging from single plaintiff administrative proceedings to class actions involving thousands of putative class members. These cases have involved the panoply of wage-and-hour claims, including alleged violations of minimum wage, overtime, prevailing wage, regular rate, meal period and rest break, business expenses, and wage statement statutes. He has also successfully defended companies against alleged violations of federal statutes, including disability access claims under Title III and pre-employment disclosures under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Mr. Chemers has also assisted clients who are facing cases involving claims for discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, and failure to accommodate.
Description
Counsel must consider and address employment issues unique to transportation and logistics companies. The pandemic has led to a tight labor market which, in turn, has caused significant challenges to logistics supply chains. Consequently, recruitment and retention are critical issues. In fact, so significant are the labor-availability pressures on trucking and logistics companies, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has proposed a pilot program to allow drivers aged 18, 19, and 20 to operate commercial vehicles in interstate commerce. Moreover, this sector highlights the continuing challenges posed by using a contingent workforce rather than workers with a traditional employment relationship, making worker classification a central point.
The transportation worker exemption under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) continues to evolve after New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira with the U.S. Supreme Court in Southwest Airlines v. Saxon poised to settle a split in the circuits regarding whether an airline’s ramp workers qualify as “transportation workers” exempt from the FAA. This decision, together with a flurry of decisions from lower courts, has broad ramifications on the viability of arbitration agreements across the transportation sector and the economy as a whole.
In addition to these hot-button issues, employment counsel for transportation and logistics companies must prepare to advise on various unique regulatory compliance matters such as worker classification, meal and rest breaks, wage and hour issues, safety issues, and drafting safety manuals and employee handbooks.
Listen as our distinguished panel provides guidance on employment issues facing counsel for transportation and logistics companies. The panelists will discuss worker classification issues, arbitration agreements, and best practices for maintaining regulatory compliance.
Outline
- The state of arbitration programs after New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira in light of the continuing evolution of the transportation worker exemption, including what to expect from the U.S. Supreme Court in Southwest Airlines Co. v. Saxon
- Continued challenges to the independent contractor owner-operator model in California and beyond
- Compliance and regulatory challenges facing the transportation industry, federal preemption of state law requirements per the FMCSA
- Best practices for employment counsel in representing transportation companies
Benefits
The panel will review these and other relevant topics:
- What are the unique worker classification issues impacting the transportation and logistics sectors?
- How will the Supreme Court's ruling in New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira affect arbitration agreements in the transportation industry?
- What are the regulatory compliance matters that employment counsel for transportation and logistics companies need to consider?
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