Wage-Fixing Case Involving Home Healthcare Workers Moves Forward

Registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and other home healthcare workers are lifelines to the people they serve. Given their skill and compassion, it seems obvious that they should receive wages that are based on the market value of the care they provide. However, in many areas, there are a limited number of home health agencies. When the leaders of agencies within a community collude in order to hold wages down, they are violating the law.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed charges against Eduardo Lopez, a former executive at multiple home health agencies in Las Vegas. Lopez is accused of conspiring to fix the wages of nurses, a serious violation of the Sherman Act. According to the indictment, Lopez, along with unnamed co-conspirators, engaged in a series of meetings and communications to coordinate and fix the wages of nurses. This alleged conspiracy, which lasted from March 2016 to May 2019, aimed to suppress competition and eliminate the ability of nurses to negotiate for fair wages.

Text messages from Lopez show that he and other agency owners specifically mentioned their goal of keeping their employees’ pay down, and mentioned specific maximum hourly wages for certain positions. There were also communications among members where they checked up on each other as to whether they were “playing nice with rates.” 

Wage-fixing conspiracies, such as the one alleged in this case, can have significant negative consequences for consumers, businesses and the overall economy. In the healthcare industry, economic manipulation might reduce quality of care and drive healthcare professionals out of the community. If convicted, Lopez could face substantial penalties, including fines and imprisonment. 

Antitrust claims relating to wages can be hard to prove. In many cases, employers are not as blatant as the agency owners in the Lopez case about what they are doing and why. Home healthcare is particularly prone to abuse because workers are often on their own and might not have the opportunity to discuss their pay and compare notes on what is being offered within a given area. 

If you suspect that employers in your field and community are collaborating to keep wages down, the employment attorneys of Kardell Law Group can investigate the facts and determine if a potential claim exists.