Booher v. Jetblue Airways Corp.

Booher v. Jetblue Airways Corp.

Opinion

ORDER REGARDING CROSS-MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

Now before the Court is the motion for partial summary judgment filed by Plaintiffs Christopher Booher and Patricia Reid, on behalf of a putative class ("Plaintiffs") and the cross-motion for partial summary judgment filed by Defendant JetBlue Airways Corporation ("JetBlue"). Having carefully reviewed the parties' papers and considered their arguments and the relevant authority, and good cause [*2]  appearing, the Court hereby DENIES Plaintiffs' motion for partial summary judgment and GRANTS IN PART AND DENIES IN PART JetBlue's motion for partial summary judgment.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff Booher was a flight attendant for JetBlue from 2003 through October 2012 (See Amended Complaint ("SAC"), ¶ 5.) Plaintiff Reid was a flight attendant for JetBlue from 2011 through August 2015. (Id. ¶ 7.) JetBlue provides air transportation and operates flights throughout the country, including from multiple airports in California, including San Francisco International Airport, Los Angeles International Airport, Oakland International Airport, Burbank Bob Hope Airport, Long Beach Airport, and San Diego International. (Id. ¶ 9.) Plaintiffs contend that JetBlue paid its flight attendants as hourly employees at hourly rates based on seniority. (Id. ¶¶ 13-14.) JetBlue currently employs approximately 3,692 flight attendants based in the United States. (See Declaration of Julia Garcia ("Garcia Decl.") ¶ 2.)

Every month JetBlue's flight attendants receive an information packet ("Bid Packet") that provides a listing of all available flight pairings ("Pairing"), a pre-planned sequence of flights that may consist [*3]  of one or more flight segments or one or more on duty times in which attendants are not in flight. (See Declaration of Steven Killeen ("Killeen Decl.") ¶¶ 2, 3, Exs. A (118:12-20), B (133:9-134:2).) Once they have reviewed the Bid Packets, flight attendants submit their preferences for specific Pairings as a bid from which their monthly schedule is generated. Flight attendants' schedules are therefore fluctuating and depend upon their preferences and the seniority-based bid system. (Garcia Decl. ¶ 3.)

Generally, a flight attendant reports to the airport at a designated report time to begin the Pairing, typically one hour prior to the first flight time. (Killeen Decl. Ex. C (34:17-35:7). Following a short briefing with the rest of the crew, the flight attendant reports to the departure gate in advance of passenger boarding. (Id. at 42:6-15.) Then the crew performs its duties to ensure that the cabin is ready to receive passengers and assists with the boarding process, which usually begins about 35 minutes prior to the scheduled departure. (Id. at 44:8-45:5.) After passengers have boarded and the pilot has received clearance, the pilot releases the brake and pushes back from the gate [*4]  (Block Out). (Id. at 28:18-21.) Upon arrival at the destination (Block In), the flight attendant assists with deplaning the passengers and may assist with cleaning the aircraft cabin. (Id. at 52:1-53:24.) The duty period ends fifteen minutes after the Block In of the last flight segment. (Id. at 58:22-59:1.)

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