On December 7, 2020, the California Court of Appeal (Second Appellate District, Division 6) decided Gulf Offshore Logistics, LLC v. Superior Court, Case Number B298318 (2020), reversed itself and, following the California Supreme Court’s guidance in Ward v. United Airlines, Inc. 9 Cal.5th 731 (2020) and Oman v. Delta Air Lines, Inc., 9 Cal.5th 762 (2020), held that California’s wage and hour laws apply to seamen working on a ship that sailed between California ports and oil drilling platforms outside California’s jurisdictional limits.
The FactsLouisiana-based employers hired crew members, who were not residents of California, to work on a vessel docked in California that provided maintenance services to offshore oil platforms located outside of California’s boundaries. On its route to the platforms, the vessel traveled both inside and outside California state boundaries.
The crew members brought a class action alleging that their employers had violated numerous California wage and hour laws, including minimum wage and overtime, meal and rest break, accurate work records, and complete wage statements.
The crew members resided in Texas, Ohio, and Mississippi and would fly to Los Angeles and be shuttled to the vessel. Once on the vessel, they were not permitted to leave without permission.
The employers moved for summary judgment on the theories that Louisiana rather than California law governed and that the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) preempted California law. The superior court denied the motion on the grounds that the employers had not shown that Louisiana law should apply or that California law should be preempted.
Petitioners sought a writ of mandate directing the superior court to...
