Class Action Law Certification

On August 31, 2017, Circuit Court Judge Kathleen M. Pantle granted Plaintiff Lucio Barrera’s motion for class certification in the matter of Barrera v. DNJ Intermodal Services, 15 CH 9701. Mr. Barrera will now serve as the class representative for a class of approximately 150 current and former DNJ drivers. He seeks damages relating to unlawful deductions DNJ took from class members’ pay, in violation of the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act. Caffarelli & Associates will serve as class counsel.

In certifying Mr. Barrera’s IWPCA claim as a class action, Judge Pantle noted that “based on the record so far, the work of the [drivers] is within DNJ’s usual course of business,” which “weighs in favor of the [drivers] being employees” protected under the IWPCA, as Mr. Barrera alleges. The IWPCA only permits employers to take deductions from employees’ compensation if the deductions meet certain criteria. Mr. Barrera will now proceed with his claim that DNJ failed to meet those criteria as they related to the deductions taken from drivers’ pay, and that DNJ is liable to all affected drivers for their losses, interest, and other relief.