Judge Signs Off on $28 Million Settlement Between Schneider, Truck Drivers
A $28 million settlement agreement between Schneider and a group of truck drivers who alleged the company did not properly offer them meal and rest breaks was approved Oct. 13 by a California judge.
Schneider, based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and more than 7,000 truck drivers reached the settlement last year to move on after years litigating allegations that the company violated California’s wage and hour laws.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White wrote in the order that the settlement agreement was a “fair, adequate and reasonable.” The judge also wrote that the settlement agreement was not an admission of wrongdoing by Schneider or an admission of “any fault, wrongdoing or liability whatsoever.”
The truck drivers in the settlement agreement worked for Schneider in California from November 2004 to the present. In September 2012, the judge had cleared a path for the drivers to pursue allegations that included those that the firm did not provide meal and rest breaks.
Schneider ranks No. 7 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest-for-hire carriers in the United States and Canada, with annual revenue of $4 billion.
American Trucking Associations is looking to have the U.S. Congress adopt this year a provision that would pre-empt states such as California from adding new layers of meal and rest break requirements on carriers that operate across state lines.
