Nuclear Power Generation Wage-Fixing Antitrust

DEFENDANTS

Constellation Energy Corporation
Ameren Corporation
American Electric Power Company Inc.
Arizona Public Service Company
Dominion Energy, Inc.
DTE Energy Company
Duke Energy Corporation
Progress Energy, Inc.
Energy Northwest
Entergy Corporation
Exelon Corporation
FirstEnergy Corporation
NextEra Energy, Inc.
Florida Power & Light Company
Omaha Public Power District
Pacific Gas & Electric Company
Public Service Enterprise Group Inc.
Southern California Edison Company
The Southern Company
STP Nuclear Operating Company
Talen Energy Corporation
Tennessee Valley Authority
Vistra Corporation
Luminant Generation Company, LLC
Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corporation
Xcel Energy, Inc.
Accelerant Technologies LLC
Human Resource Consultants, LLC

WHAT’S THE ISSUE?

Hagens Berman has filed a nationwide class-action lawsuit against 26 nuclear power companies and two consulting companies that collectively produce all the nuclear-generated electricity sold to consumers across the country. The complaint alleges that the defendants engaged in a multi-faceted wage-fixing conspiracy to align, fix, and suppress the compensation of nuclear power workers across the nation. The lawsuit brings antitrust claims for the alleged use of industry dominance to unlawfully avoid “paying higher-than-necessary-compensation” to thousands of employees over the past two decades.

HOW DO I KNOW IF I’M AFFECTED?

If you have worked for one of the following companies as a nuclear operator, nuclear engineer, nuclear technician or in any other nuclear power-related role since May 1, 2003, you may be affected Fill out the form to find out your rights »

Companies named in the complaint include:

• AEP
• Ameren
• APS
• Bruce Power
• Constellation
• Dominion
• Duke Energy
• DTE
• EnergyBW
• Entergy
• Exelon
• FirstEnergy
• Nebraska Public Power District
• NextEra
• Ontario Power Generation
• OPPD
• PG&E
• PSEG
• SCE
• Southern
• STP
• Talen Energy
• TVA
• Vistra
• Wolf Creek
• Xcel

NUCLEAR POWER WAGE-FIXING ALLEGATIONS EXPLAINED

According to the lawsuit, starting in May 2003, nuclear power plant companies began conspiring to illegally fix and suppress the compensation of nuclear operators, nuclear engineers, nuclear technicians and other nuclear-power employees by sharing compensation information and ensuring their decisions were “never made in a silo.”

The lawsuit alleges that the companies worked in tandem with two consulting companies, Accelerant Technologies LLC and Human Resource Consultants, LLC, to share compensation data and “avoid paying higher-than-necessary compensation to employees,” directly causing hundreds of thousands of workers to be paid less than they deserved.

The nuclear power defendants, along with their alleged co-conspirators, are responsible for the production of all the nuclear-generated electricity sold in the U.S. and operate all 54 nuclear power plants across the country. They have employed hundreds of thousands of potential class members at those plants over the past two decades. If you were a nuclear power worker and believe you may be impacted by this lawsuit,  fill out the form to find out your rights »

THE NUCLEAR HUMAN RESOURCES GROUP (NHRG)

Defendants were members of the Nuclear Human Resources Group (NHRG), a human-resources association that consisted of all the nuclear power companies in the U.S. and Canada, which provided the organizational structure through which the defendants and coconspirators had the opportunity to execute the alleged conspiracy, including maintaining contact lists, facilitating the exchange of information and hosting annual conferences.

The complaint claims that defendants and coconspirators consistently updated a digital repository of compensation data, made available only to other nuclear defendants via a password-protected website, and directly exchanged the deanonymized data about current Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) and planned future wage increases.

Further, the lawsuit claims, the companies created and maintained compensation comparison reports, held annual meetings to exchange sensitive compensation information and directly contacted one another via telephone and email coordination regarding compensation. Hence, the lawsuit accuses defendants of entering into an agreement to fix and suppress compensation in violation of the Sherman Act.

YOUR RIGHTS AS A NUCLEAR POWER WORKER

Nuclear power workers may have been cheated out of their rightful wages through this alleged decades-long agreement, according to the lawsuit, and we intend to fight to recover losses. When employers conspire to stifle employee pay for the sake of profits, workers always lose. Under federal antitrust law, employee wages are protected.

TOP EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS AND ANTITRUST FIRM

Hagens Berman is one of the most successful employment and antitrust litigation law firms in the U.S. and has achieved total settlements valued at more than $340 billion for class members and clients in lawsuits against some of the world’s most powerful corporations. Hagens Berman has achieved many monumental victories in wage-fixing antitrust lawsuits, including a settlement valued at more than $398 million for poultry plant workers impacted by an alleged wage-fixing conspiracy. The firm is currently pursuing similar litigation on behalf of naval architects, marine engineers and other skilled workers in the shipbuilding industry. Your claim will be handled by attorneys with deep experience in both employment law and antitrust law.

NO COST TO YOU

There is no scenario where any class member will ever be asked to pay any out-of-pocket attorney fees or legal costs. In the event Hagens Berman or any other firm obtains a settlement that provides benefits to class members, the court will decide a reasonable fee to be awarded to the class’s legal team.