Mora v. Webcor Constr., L.P., 20 Cal. App. 5^th 211 (2018)

Steven Mora filed this putative class action/PAGA claim against his former employer, Webcor Construction, for violation of the California wage statement statute (Cal. Lab. Code § 226(a)) based upon payments made to a union vacation trust fund authorized by the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947 (“LMRA”). The trial court sustained the employer’s demurrer without leave to amend on the grounds that payments to the union vacation trust fund were not “wages” within the meaning of the Section 226(a) and, in any event, Mora’s claims were preempted by the LMRA. The Court of Appeal affirmed dismissal of the action. See also Newton v. Parker Drilling Mgmt. Servs., Ltd., 881 F.3d 1078 (9^th Cir. 2018) (California law (not the FLSA) applies to workers employed on drilling platforms located on the outer continental shelf off the coast of Santa Barbara); Solus Indus. Innovations, LLC v. Superior Court, 4 Cal. 5^th 316 (2018) (district attorney’s unfair competition and fair advertising law claims brought against employer for violating workplace safety standards were not preempted by the federal OSHA statute).