McDonald’s Joint Employer Case Has High Court Questions: Workers

The California Supreme Court should weigh in on a recent Ninth Circuit ruling that McDonald’s Corp. is not responsible for alleged wage violations against franchise restaurant workers, lawyers for those workers said.

The workers asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Oct. 29 to send four questions of state law to California’s high court that could have important implications for franchising, as well as other business-to-business relationships that could trigger joint liability. The questions stem from a circuit court ruling that was a big win for McDonald’s and comes amid unsettled questions about joint employment under ...