News in Brief April 29 – Whole Foods, Arm & Hammer and More

Abercrombie Workers Get Tentative Approval of $2M Settlement

Abercrombie & Fitch workers in California scored a win on Thursday when a judge granted tentative approval to a $2 million settlement. This will hopefully provide final resolution to a class action that claimed the company failed to give its employees the rest breaks they were entitled to under California law. Each class member is expected to receive about $35 in damages.

Pennsylvania Oilfield Workers Say They’re Not Getting Proper Overtime Pay

Two oilfield workers in Pennsylvania hit their employer, Rush Wellsite, with a lawsuit. The suit claims the employees regularly worked more than 40 hours per week, but didn’t get the overtime they were entitled to. The plaintiffs – one an operator and the other a junior field engineer – say they were misclassified as exempt even though they didn’t meet the qualifications of exempt employees. The suit alleges that these workers were later reclassified, but that their bonuses weren’t taken into account when calculating overtime wages – meaning they still weren’t getting proper pay.

PETA Loses Suit Against Whole Foods

A federal judge in California has dismissed with prejudice a proposed class action against Whole Foods Market. The suit, which was filed by PETA, alleged that the company made misleading statements about its meat products and how animals were raised before being farmed. Judge Nathanael Cousins found that the animal rights group didn’t do enough to prove their claims, despite permission to amend an older, previously dismissed complaint.

Arm & Hammer Leaves Too Much Empty Space in Liquid Detergent Bottles

Arm & Hammer is the latest company to be hit with a “slack fill” lawsuit. The suit claims that the extra room the company leaves in its oversized liquid detergent bottles serves only one purpose – to trick shoppers into thinking they’re getting more of the product than they actually are. The suit accuses Arm & Hammer of violating state laws in both New Jersey and New York.

Avis Shift Managers Score Win with $8M Settlement

A New York federal judge has granted final approval to a $7.8 million dollar settlement against Avis Budget Car Rental. The settlement will resolve claims that the company failed to properly pay its shift and operations managers, who say they were misclassified as exempt and denied overtime pay in violation of federal law. The three plaintiffs in the case are expected to receive between $15,000 and $5,000 each. The exact payout for the 250 class members has not yet been reported.

Toyota Under Fire for Lexus’ “Cold Weather” Packages

Toyota has been hit with a lawsuit saying that the “cold weather” packages offered on 2015 Lexus GS 350 models don’t come with heated steering wheels – even though the car maker advertises that they do. The plaintiff says that she paid nearly $200 for the package and that thousands may be affected.