On Monday, March 28, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral argument in Southwest Airlines Co. v. Saxon.

Southwest Airlines Co. v. Saxon asks the Supreme Court to determine whether workers who load/unload goods from vehicles that travel in interstate commerce but do not themselves physically transport the goods across state lines are considered interstate “transportation workers” exempt under Section 1 of the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”). This case raises similar questions to those answered by Chief Judge Freda Wolfson in the Uber misclassification cases in the District of New Jersey. In the Uber cases, Chief Judge Wolfson rejected the conclusion that Uber drivers are exempt from the FAA as interstate “transportation workers” simply because they sometimes drop off people at airports for interstate trips and occasionally cross state lines. NJCJI will issue an update when the Supreme Court issues its opinion in Southwest Airlines.