Yerba Mate Delivery Drivers Get Class Status in OT, Break Suit

Delivery drivers may proceed as a certified class on California labor claims alleging that Guyaki Yerba Mate, an organic tea company, and its state-wide distributor shortchanged them by misclassifying them as outside salespersons exempt from overtime pay, a federal judge in San Francisco ruled.

The nearly 200 drivers were subject to companywide policies governing how they spent their time, and shared the same work experiences and job duties, so their claims can easily be resolved through common evidence, Judge William H. Alsup of the U.S. District Court for the Norther District of California said Tuesday.

The class certification order applies ...