Class & Collective Actions

When an employer shorts one worker, it’s usually shorting many. When a company’s conduct harms one person, it rarely stops there. Class actions let people who were wronged the same way take it on together.

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What is a class action?

A class action is a lawsuit brought by one or more people on behalf of a larger group harmed the same way by the same defendant. It lets people pursue claims that would be impractical to bring alone — because the individual amounts are modest, or because the cost of suing exceeds what any one person could recover. Together, those claims carry weight.

Crowd of workers in red hats standing with their backs to the camera

Common situations we handle

  • Wage and hour collective actions

    Unpaid overtime, off-the-clock work, misclassification, and minimum wage violations — when they affect a whole category of workers, not just one. These are the class cases most connected to the rest of our practice.

  • Employment class actions

    Discrimination, wage disputes, and other workplace violations that follow a policy or a pattern rather than a single decision.

  • Worker misclassification

    Workers labeled “independent contractors” or “franchisees” while the company controls how they actually work. Misclassification is rarely done to one person — it’s usually applied to an entire role.

  • Retirement plan disputes (ERISA)

    Excessive fees, imprudent investments, and breaches of fiduciary duty in 401(k) and pension plans.

  • Spam texts and unwanted messages (TCPA)

    Businesses that text you without consent. Federal law allows recovery per message, and these violations are almost never limited to one recipient.

Why they exist

Some wrongs are too small to sue over alone and too widespread to ignore.

If an employer shaves fifteen minutes off every shift, no single worker loses enough to justify a lawsuit. But across four hundred workers over three years, it’s a great deal of money — and the employer keeps it precisely because no one person can afford to challenge it.

That’s what a class action solves. It aggregates claims that are individually small and collectively serious, and it puts a group of people on equal footing with a company that counted on them being alone.

Kitchen workers in aprons preparing food together on a shift

Federal and state protections

Stone courthouse columns framed by red autumn leaves

Class and collective actions are governed by both federal and state law.

Federal

Class actions in federal court are governed by Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which sets the certification requirements. Wage and hour cases under the FLSA often proceed as collective actions — a related but distinct mechanism where workers must affirmatively opt in rather than being included by default. ERISA governs retirement plan claims, and the TCPA governs unwanted calls and texts.

Minnesota

Minnesota has its own class action rules and consumer protection statutes that can work alongside federal claims. Minnesota’s wage laws also allow group claims that reach further than federal law does.

 

Illinois

Illinois recognizes class actions under its own procedural rules, and Illinois wage and consumer protection statutes provide additional avenues for group claims.

Which law applies depends on your situation. Not sure? That’s what we figure out with you.

When a case can proceed as a class action

Not every group of similar complaints becomes a class action. A court has to certify the class, and that turns on five requirements.

  • Numerosity

    There are enough affected people that suing individually would be impractical

  • Commonality

    The claims share common questions of law or fact. Everyone was harmed by the same conduct

  • Typicality

    The named plaintiffs’ claims are typical of the class. Their experience represents everyone else’s

  • Adequacy of representation

    The named plaintiffs and their lawyers can fairly protect the whole class’s interests

  • Superiority

    A class action is a better way to resolve this than hundreds of separate lawsuits

  • Getting certified is where these cases are won or lost

    It’s the hardest part, and it’s the part that requires experience most

What it’s like to be part of one

Kitchen workers preparing food together on a shift

Most people join a class action without doing much of anything.

If you receive a notice...

…you’re likely already a class member. You typically don’t have to file anything, hire anyone, or appear in court. You have the right to be informed, to be represented, and in many cases to opt out and pursue your own claim instead.

If you’re a named plaintiff...

…you take on a larger role. You bring the case on everyone’s behalf, work with the lawyers, and may be deposed. It’s more involvement, and it’s what makes the case possible.

Either way, you don’t pay upfront.

Class actions run on contingency. Fees come out of a recovery, if there is one.

How we handle class and collective actions

Class actions are long, document-heavy, and expensive to bring. They demand a firm willing to invest years and real money before seeing anything back — which is exactly why most defendants count on nobody bringing one.

Shawn Wanta has spent his career on these cases, and is recognized among the National Trial Lawyers’ Top 100 Civil Plaintiff and Top 10 Wage and Hour attorneys for that work.

Every case starts with a free call. If your situation looks like it affects more than just you, we’ll tell you. If it doesn’t, we’ll tell you that too.

On contingency, you pay nothing unless we win.

Attorneys who handle these cases

Meet the full team
Shawn Wanta, Founding Partner at Wanta Thome

Shawn Wanta

Founding Partner

Recognized among the nation’s Top 100 Civil Plaintiff and Top 10 Wage and Hour attorneys, a determined litigator fighting for workers in class and collective actions.

Admitted in MN · IL

Joni Thome, Founding Partner at Wanta Thome

Joni Thome

Founding Partner

Drawing on 25 years of representing professionals and managers, a steady advocate for employees facing discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in the workplace.

Admitted in MN

Suzanne Heywood, Attorney at Wanta Thome

Suzanne Heywood

Attorney

Driven by her own encounters with corporate unfairness, a tenacious champion focused on protecting the rights, livelihoods, and futures of hardworking professionals.

Admitted in IN · IL · MI

Luke Molvarec, Attorney at Wanta Thome

Luke Molvarec

Attorney

Forged by his background as a Marine, an unwavering defender fighting to level the playing field and secure meaningful financial recovery for unfairly treated workers.

Admitted in IL

Common questions about class actions

  • How do I know if my problem affects other people too?

    Often you already suspect it. If your coworkers are paid the same way, classified the same way, or subject to the same policy, the problem is probably structural rather than personal. That’s the first thing we look at.

  • What’s the difference between a class action and a collective action?

    Mostly, how people join. In a class action, affected people are generally included by default and can opt out. In an FLSA collective action — the mechanism for most wage cases — workers have to affirmatively opt in. It changes the strategy considerably.

  • Do I have to pay anything to join a class action?

    No. Class actions run on contingency. There’s no upfront cost, and fees come out of a recovery if there is one. If there’s no recovery, you owe nothing.

  • Will I have to go to court?

    Almost certainly not, if you’re a class member. Named plaintiffs take on more — they may be deposed and work closely with the legal team — but the vast majority of people in a class action never see a courtroom.

  • Can I opt out and sue on my own instead?

    Often, yes. Class members typically have the right to opt out and pursue an individual claim. Whether that’s the better move depends on how strong your individual case is and what you’d be giving up. We can help you think it through.
See all class actions FAQs

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Common questions

I got a class action notice in the mail. What do I do?

Read it, and don’t ignore the deadlines. It will tell you whether you’re included, what the claim is, and what your options are — including whether you need to do anything to participate or to opt out. If you’re unsure what it means, we’re happy to look at it.

How long do class actions take?

Longer than most cases — often years. Certification alone can take a long time, and defendants generally fight it hard. It’s a real commitment, which is part of why they’re brought only when the underlying problem is substantial.

How much do class members typically recover?

It varies enormously. Individual recoveries are sometimes modest, because the harm to any one person was modest. The point isn’t always the individual check — it’s that conduct affecting thousands of people gets stopped and paid for.

Can I be retaliated against for joining a class action against my employer?

No. Participating in a wage or employment class action is protected activity. If your employer cut your hours, demoted you, or fired you for it, that’s a separate violation on top of the original claim.

What if I’m not sure I qualify?

Call and find out. It costs nothing, and we’ll tell you honestly whether you’re likely part of a class, whether you have a stronger individual claim, or whether there’s no case here at all.