Appeals court lets class-action status stand in Silicon Valley collusion case<article>
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A U.S. appeals court has cleared the way for thousands of Silicon Valley workers to proceed as a group with a lawsuit alleging that technology companies including Google and Apple colluded to drive down employee compensation.
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The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit on Tuesday denied a petition from the technology companies seeking to appeal a previous ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Lucy Koh that gives the case class-action status. If the case proceeds to trial, now set for May 27, and the companies lose, they could be ordered to pay more than $9 billion in damages to cover lost wages to about 60,000 employees represented in the lawsuit who contend that the companies forged illegal agreements to not hire each other’s workers, in violation of federal antitrust laws.
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The case pits a number of Silicon Valley software engineers against their employers, over what the employees say amounted to “anti-poaching” agreements that drove down their compensation and promoted unfair competition.
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The case dates back to 2011 when five engineers alleged that Adobe Systems, Apple, Google, Intel, Intuit, Lucasfilm and Pixar engaged in an “overarching conspiracy” to fix and suppress employee compensation and to restrict their mobility. Lucasfilm, Pixar and Intuit have since settled with the plaintiffs.
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Appeals court lets class-action status stand in Silicon Valley collusion case
