Amerijet International, Inc. v. Miami-Dade County, Florida

627 F. App'x 744
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedSeptember 21, 2015
Docket14-11401
StatusUnpublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 627 F. App'x 744 (Amerijet International, Inc. v. Miami-Dade County, Florida) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Amerijet International, Inc. v. Miami-Dade County, Florida, 627 F. App'x 744 (11th Cir. 2015).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

Long before the current debate on minimum wage began, Miami-Dade County joined a growing number of municipalities in the country by enacting a “living wage” ordinance. Such laws typically require city or county contractors to pay their employees wages that are often higher than the applicable federal or state minimum rates, and are designed to help workers meet their basic needs — such as food, shelter, and medical care — without reliance on government programs. In this appeal brought by Amerijet International Inc., we are asked to decide whether a section of the County’s Living Wage Ordinance, Miami-Dade Code of ORDINANCES ch. 2, art. I, § 2 — 8.9(f)(2)(A), as applied to air carriers, is preempted by the Airline Deregulation Act, 49 U.S.C. § 41713(b)(1) or is unconstitutional under the Constitution’s dormant Commerce Clause and Equal Protection Clause, We conclude that the LWO is not preempted, and that it is constitutional.

I

A

The County enacted the LWO in 1999 to promote the creation of full-time, permanent jobs that would pay Miami-Dade residents a sustainable wage and thereby ease the burden on local taxpayers who would otherwise be required to pay for social services. By its terms, the LWO requires service contractors (certain individuals or entities that conduct business with the County or that use the facilities of Miami International Airport (“MIA”)) to pay a “living wage” to all employees who perform “covered services.” 1

The County sets the living wage rate annually, and that wage is typically higher than the state and federal minimum rates. In addition to setting a higher wage floor, the LWO also imposes several administra *746 tive duties on covered service contractors. For instance, such contractors must maintain records for all employees who provide covered services, including basic employment information such as (1) the names and addresses of employees; (2) job titles and classifications; (3) the daily number of hours worked by employees; (4) the gross wages earned by employees and any deductions made; and (5) social security returns and any payments to employees for fringe benefits. The records must be kept for a minimum of three years from the suspension, expiration, or termination of the service contractor’s agreement with the County. Contractors must also submit, semi-annually, a certified payroll showing earning records for each employee and an employment activity report containing the race, gender, wages, and zip code of any employees who are hired or terminated.

B

Amerijet is an air carrier which has received a certificate from the United States Department of Transportation, as provided in 14 C.F.R. Part 121. It is a small all-cargo airline (that is, it only carries property and mail) that services the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America.

In 2005, Amerijet expanded its operations to include a variety of other services, generally referred to as cargo and ground handling services (“cargo handling services”). Such services largely consist of the loading, unloading, and delivery of cargo for other airlines. In 2010, Amerijet executed a lease with the County, the owner and operator of MIA, for warehouse space to regularly provide such cargo handling services at the airport. The lease contained a provision requiring Amerijet to comply with all of the County’s applicable ordinances, including the LWO.

On June 7, 2010, Miami-Dade’s Department of Small Business Development (“SBD”) sent a request for information to Amerijet, advising the carrier that it had initiated an investigation into alleged violations of the LWO. The investigation was the result of a complaint filed by one of Amerijet’s employees alleging that the carrier had begun to provide cargo services for British Airways and other airlines without paying the requisite living wage rate. The SBD informed Amerijet that such cargo handling was a “covered service” under the LWO and advised the carrier that “Amerijet employees providing th[e] service on behalf of Amerijet for other airlines are covered by the living wage and must be paid accordingly.” D.E. 50-2 at 17.

In response to the SBD’s communication, Amerijet inquired as to whether the LWO applied to air carriers. Although Amerijet agreed that cargo handling was a covered service under the LWO, the airline was under the impression that the LWO did not apply to it. Apparently, Amerijet believed that the LWO only applied to covered service contractors who were not air carriers. After much back and forth with the SBD, and without a favorable resolution, Amerijet determined that it was not financially feasible to pay its cargo handling employees the living wage rate. On April 29, 2011, Amerijet outsourced its cargo handling services for other airlines to an on-airport cargo service contractor and laid off its in-warehouse cargo handlers.

Subsequently, some of Amerijet’s former employees filed suit in state court for back pay and penalties under the LWO. Amerijet settled that action, but not before it filed the instant suit against the County for declaratory and injunctive relief.

*747 Amerijet’s amended complaint alleged that the LWO was preempted by the ADA, 49 U.S.C. § 41713(b)(1); the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act, 49 U.S.C. § 14501(c)(1) (“FAAAA”); the Transportation Security Administration’s regulations; 49 C.F.R §§ 15.5 and 1520.5; and certain Open Skies Agreements. The complaint further alleged that the LWO violated the dormant Commerce Clause and the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution, and asserted state law claims under the Florida Constitution and the County’s Home Rule Charter. The County filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that Amerijet lacked standing to bring its claims. The parties then filed cross motions for summary judgment. In an omnibus order, the district court ruled that Amerijet had standing, but found no federal impediment to the County’s application of the LWO to the cargo handling services that Amerijet performed for other airlines. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the County on all the federal claims and dismissed Amerijet’s state law claims, deciding not to exercise supplemental jurisdiction. See 28 U.S.C. § 1367(c).

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Capron v. Massachusetts Attorney General
944 F.3d 9 (First Circuit, 2019)
Dolan v. Jetblue Airways Corp.
385 F. Supp. 3d 1338 (S.D. Florida, 2019)
DDS v. Bd. of Dental Examiners of Ala.
382 F. Supp. 3d 1214 (N.D. Alabama, 2019)
Ultra Aviation Services v. Cruz Clemente
272 So. 3d 426 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2019)
Ever Bedoya v. American Eagle Express Inc
914 F.3d 812 (Third Circuit, 2019)
Clarke v. Tannin, Inc.
S.D. Alabama, 2018
Zamber v. Am. Airlines, Inc.
282 F. Supp. 3d 1289 (S.D. Florida, 2017)
Lupian v. Joseph Cory Holdings, LLC
240 F. Supp. 3d 309 (D. New Jersey, 2017)
DaSilva v. Border Transfer of MA, Inc.
227 F. Supp. 3d 154 (D. Massachusetts, 2017)
Massachusetts Delivery Associa v. Healey
821 F.3d 187 (First Circuit, 2016)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
627 F. App'x 744, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/amerijet-international-inc-v-miami-dade-county-florida-ca11-2015.