n June 6, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that airline cargo loaders are exempt from the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) under the statute’s “transportation worker” exemption. In Southwest Airlines Co. v. Saxon, the Court reasoned, in a unanimous 8-0 decision, that while not all employees of an airline are exempt from the FAA, ramp employees who load and unload cargo from planes are part of a “class of workers engaged in foreign or interstate commerce” specifically exempted by the act. By rejecting some of the arguments advanced by both the plaintiff and the defendant, the Court’s holding is a “mixed bag” for employers.
Latrice Saxon, a ramp supervisor for the airline who frequently loads and unloads baggage, airmail, and commercial cargo on and off airplanes that travel across the country, had brought a putative class action alleging wage and hour violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. The airline sought to enforce an arbitration agreement with Saxon that required individualized arbitration for wage disputes pursuant to the FAA. The high court sided with Saxon, ruling her specific job duties place her in a “class of workers” engaged in foreign or interstate commerce who are exempted from the FAA.
However, in reaching the conclusion, the Court rejected Saxon’s industry-wide view that all airline workers fall into the exemption for “foreign or interstate commerce” similar to “seamen” and “railroad workers.” The Court stated that Saxon could...
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