Sturm v. CB Transp., Inc.

• Citation: 943 F.Supp.2d 1102
• Decision Date: 02 May 2013
• Docket Number: Case No. 1:12–cv–109–CWD.
• Parties: Delbert STURM, an individual, Richard D. Ferguson, an individual, Dwayne Volk, an individual, Stan Dalrymple, an individual, Octavio Cruz, Jr., an individual, Cantos Reyes, an individual, Jason Miller, an individual, Pat Stephen Gunn, an individual, Chris Holman, an individual, and John Does 1–20, Plaintiffs, v. CB TRANSPORT, INC., a foreign corporation, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Idaho

943 F.Supp.2d 1102

Delbert STURM, an individual, Richard D. Ferguson, an individual, Dwayne Volk, an individual, Stan Dalrymple, an individual, Octavio Cruz, Jr., an individual, Cantos Reyes, an individual, Jason Miller, an individual, Pat Stephen Gunn, an individual, Chris Holman, an individual, and John Does 1–20, Plaintiffs,

v.CB TRANSPORT, INC., a foreign corporation, Defendant.

Case No. 1:12–cv–109–CWD.

United States District Court,

D. Idaho.

May 2, 2013.

John Ryan Jameson, Jason S. Risch, Risch Pisca, PLLC, Boise, ID, for Plaintiffs.

Selena C. Smith, William T. Grimm, Davis Grimm Payne & Marra, Seattle, WA, Jill S. Holinka, Susan E. Buxton, Moore Smith Buxton & Turcke, Boise, ID, for Defendant.

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER—AMENDED

CANDY W. DALE, United States Magistrate Judge.

INTRODUCTION

Plaintiffs are the former and current employees of Defendant CB Transport, Inc., a trucking company that hauls raw milk from Idaho and Oregon dairy farms to Darigold processing plants, and then takes the finished product to Darigold customers. Plaintiffs claim that under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), 29 U.S.C. § 201 et seq., they are entitled to back pay for time worked over 40 hours per week. CB moved for summary judgment, arguing Plaintiffs are not entitled to overtime pay because the entire pool of milk tanker drivers falls under the Motor Carrier Act exemption to the FLSA. CB argues also that Plaintiffs' state law claims are either preempted by the FLSA, barred by the state law statute of limitations, or fail as a matter of law. Finally, CB argues that summary judgment must be granted as to the claims made by Plaintiffs who did not respond to the motion for summary judgment, because Plaintiffs are not a certified class.

Additionally, Plaintiffs filed a motion to amend their complaint to add named plaintiffs in place of the John Does, and to add a claim of willful violation under the FLSA. CB does not contest the addition of the claim for willful violation of the FLSA. But, CB opposes the addition of new plaintiffs, arguing the delay and prejudice is sufficient to warrant denial of the motion. If the motion to amend is granted, CB contends that the newly named Plaintiffs should not be permitted to avail themselves of the relation back doctrine for statute of limitations purposes.

The Court conducted a hearing regarding the motions on April 15, 2013. After careful consideration of the parties' arguments, their memoranda, and the evidentiary record presented, the Court will deny CB's Motion for Summary Judgment, and grant Plaintiffs' Motion to Amend, as discussed below.

FACTS

1. Undisputed Facts

In support of its motion, CB described its operations in detail. CB Transport, Inc., is headquartered in Stanwood, Washington, and is owned by Bruce and Royce Carlson. In 2006, CB acquired a trucking company involved in the dairy hauling business, and began operating in and around Caldwell, Idaho, in 2006.

CB contracts with dairy farms and dairy processing plants to haul raw milk and processed dairy products. On the first leg of the milk's journey, CB picks up raw milk from dairy farms located in Idaho and Oregon and transports the milk to the dairy processing plants, which were located in Caldwell, Jerome, and Boise, Idaho. The dairy processing plants were owned and operated by Darigold, CB's main customer. Between September 2009 and August 2012, CB hauled raw milk from fifty different farms. Approximately 35–40 farms were located within Idaho, while the other 10–15 farms were located in Oregon. On average, 4% of CB's total raw milk hauls originated from Oregon dairy farms.

The second aspect of CB's hauling business consisted of “interplant” hauling of processed milk. CB would haul milk, buttermilk, condensed milk, and cream from one processing plant to another. The processing plants were located in Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and on occasion, Utah. The location of the plants did not change, but the volume of dairy product transported between plants, as well as the frequency of interplant hauls, varied from month to month. (Carlson Aff. ¶ 10, Dkt. 38.) The variation could be caused by customer orders, or mechanical problems requiring re-routing, among other things. On average, between September 2009 and August 2012, 14% of the total interplant hauls were interstate hauls.

The milk tanker trucks originated from the Caldwell Plant, located in Caldwell, Idaho. Ryan Thompson has been the plant manager in Caldwell since 2009. Between September 2009 and August 2012, CB employed between 25 and 35 milk tanker drivers. The tanker drivers operated milk tankers weighing 26,000 or more pounds when not loaded with milk or milk products.

Plaintiffs in this case were employed as milk tanker drivers by CB, and hired to drive milk tankers filled with raw milk, and processed milk and dairy products. Plaintiffs, like all CB tanker drivers, were expected to maintain a Class A commercial driver's license to operate the milk tanker trucks, as well as have knowledge about federal regulations affecting interstate commerce. This knowledge included compliance with Federal Department of Transportation (“DOT”) regulations. CB required its drivers to maintain compliance with Federal Department of Transportation regulations and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (“FMCSR”). (Carlson Aff. ¶ 15–16, Dkt. 38.)

Caldwell Plant Manager Ryan Thompson primarily was responsible for scheduling CB drivers. Each year, he assigned CB drivers to regular routes, which the driver would drive multiple days each week. The drivers assigned to these regular routes were subject to change, and could change, depending upon hiring or firing of employees, customer orders, mechanical problems, plant closures, or other reasons. The milk tanker drivers were not able to choose their own routes, and Thompson scheduled drivers to these regular routes without regard to driver preference. Thompson also reassigned drivers to other regular routes, and could assign any driver to a route that involved interstate travel, because all of CB's drivers were eligible to make interstate trips for deliveries.

There were various types of regular, assigned routes. For example, some milk tanker drivers drove routes hauling raw milk from Oregon and Idaho dairy farms to Idaho processing plants. Other drivers hauled raw milk from Idaho dairy farms to Idaho processing plants. Other drivers drove a pre-determined route between Caldwell, Idaho, and Issaquah, Washington, several times each week. And still other drivers hauled interplant loads between plants located in Idaho, or between Idaho and out-of-state plants. Some regular routes were entirely restricted to travel within Idaho. Other regular routes involved travel between Idaho and other states. The routes either ended at or originated at a milk processing plant. For example, some drivers would be assigned a route to pick up raw milk from farms in Oregon and Idaho, and deliver it to a processing plant in Idaho. Then, once the milk was processed into, for example, buttermilk, another CB driver would load the buttermilk at the Idaho processing plant, and transport it to another location in Idaho or in Washington, Utah, or Oregon. (Carlson Aff. ¶ 22 Dkt. 38; Thompson Aff. ¶ 10 Dkt. 39.)

In addition to a driver's regular assigned route, a driver could be assigned additional loads or hauls periodically. These additional assignments could occur due to plant shut downs, or because of customer orders, or due to internal staffing needs, such as an employee illness or vacation. Any CB driver could be asked to handle such an additional assignment. When selecting a particular driver to haul an additional load or to assist on another route, Thompson looked at a variety of factors, but primarily selected drivers based on their availability and location at the time he learned that a scheduling adjustment was necessary. Efficiency and flexibility were important, because CB hauled a perishable product, and so the ability to adapt to unexpected events was critical. Thus, Thompson selected a driver from his pool of drivers to fill an “emergency” route or pick up a route for an absent driver based upon efficiency considerations and driver availability at that moment.

With regard to the individual Plaintiffs, Thompson identified that five of the nine named Plaintiffs drove across state lines between September 2009 and September 2012. Octavio Cruz hauled processed milk and dairy products from Caldwell, Idaho, to Issaquah, Washington, a total of 44 times between October 2010 and April 2012. Stanley Dalrymple hauled milk and dairy products from Caldwell, Idaho, to Portland, Oregon, and to Issaquah, Washington, on seven occasions. Richard Ferguson hauled processed milk products between Caldwell, Idaho, and Ontario, Oregon, on 34 occasions between January and December 2010. Delbert Sturm hauled milk between Caldwell, Idaho, and Ontario and Nyssa, Oregon, on September 1, 2009. Dwayne Volk hauled processed dairy products from Caldwell, Idaho, to Ontario and Vale, Oregon, on four occasions in September 2009.

In March 2010, the United States Department of Labor conducted an investigation of CB Transport's overtime pay practices. The investigation resulted from a complaint from a driver alleging he had worked overtime in three work weeks while employed as a driver, but that he did not receive overtime pay. The DOL requested documentation of hours worked and payroll records covering the period between March 31, 2008, through March 30, 2010. CB supplied the documentation to the investigator. The DOL Audit concluded that the employee was exempt from overtime because he was in a pool of drivers who could be called to perform interstate deliveries at any time. (Smith Decl. Ex. 9, Dkt. 46–4.) Further, the Department of Labor concluded that all nineteen drivers and two mechanics employed by CB at the time were exempt from the overtime pay provisions of the...