Yes. The Swift Transportation overtime class action — Carlson v. Swift Transportation Co. of Arizona, LLC — is still open and being litigated in federal court.
Washington driver David Carlson filed the case on August 10, 2023, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, Case No. 3:23-cv-05722, alleging Swift's per-mile pay structure failed to pay drivers overtime under the Washington Minimum Wage Act. No settlement has been reached, and no trial has resolved the claims. The case remains in active motion practice over whether Swift's drivers are legally entitled to overtime at all.
Official resources:
- Explore the official data from SEC — Use this primary source to review the underlying data.
- Read the official notice from Landline — Use this primary source to verify the official announcement.
Table of Contents
- What Is This Case About?
- Has the Class Been Certified?
- Why Hasn't Swift Settled or Lost Yet?
- What Does the Court Docket Show Right Now?
- Don't Confuse This With Swift's Older, Closed Overtime Cases
- Frequently Asked Questions
What Is This Case About?
Carlson's complaint targets Swift's per-mile compensation model, arguing it fails to account for overtime hours worked by Washington-based drivers. The lawsuit alleges that the putative class worked an aggregate of at least 42,000 workweeks starting April 21, 2020, which marks the beginning of the period for which unpaid overtime is claimed.
That date matters because it sets the outer boundary of who the case could eventually cover. Drivers whose Washington-based work falls after April 21, 2020, fall within the scope of the claims being litigated, while work performed earlier does not.
Has the Class Been Certified?
Yes. The federal court granted class certification for the Washington drivers' overtime claims, a ruling the court reached after finding that the core legal and factual questions were common enough across the group and that Carlson's situation was typical of the class he seeks to represent, according to Landline Media's coverage of the certification order.
The court concluded that Swift's pay practices could be evaluated using evidence that applies classwide, rather than requiring a separate inquiry for each driver. Certification is a procedural milestone, not a verdict. It means the case can proceed as a group action rather than requiring each driver to sue individually, but it does not determine who wins or whether any money will ultimately be paid.
Why Hasn't Swift Settled or Lost Yet?
Swift is actively defending the case on the merits. The company's position, as reported by Law360 Employment Authority, is that its drivers are exempt from Washington's overtime requirements under RCW § 49.46.130(2)(f), a statutory carve-out that applies to certain transportation employees who receive a "reasonable equivalent" of overtime pay through their existing compensation structure.
That exemption argument is the central legal fight in the case. If Swift prevails on it, the drivers' overtime claims could be defeated regardless of the per-mile pay issue. If Carlson prevails, Swift's pay practices would be found to violate the state's overtime law for the certified class period.
What Does the Court Docket Show Right Now?
Docket records confirm the case remained active in the Western District of Washington through at least 2024, with motion practice — including filings such as Document 34 — continuing to address the class certification and exemption issues, according to Justia's docket record. No final judgment, dismissal order, or settlement appears on the docket.
The most recent available reporting confirms no settlement, trial verdict, or case-closing order has been issued, meaning the litigation remains unresolved while the exemption defense is worked out, per Law360's reporting on the class certification. Drivers watching this case should expect continued motion practice rather than an imminent settlement announcement.
Don't Confuse This With Swift's Older, Closed Overtime Cases
Two earlier Swift overtime disputes have already concluded, and neither should be mistaken for the open Carlson case. Slack v. Swift Transportation Co. of Arizona resolved overtime, orientation pay, and per diem deduction claims brought by Washington "dedicated" drivers covering 2008 through 2017, with a claims deadline of December 3, 2018.
That settlement is finished — there is nothing left to file. A separate matter involving Swift customer service representatives, brought as a Fair Labor Standards Act collective action, also closed years ago. That case was resolved through a court-approved settlement reported near $3.6 million covering back overtime and fees, along with Swift's agreement to reclassify the CSR role as non-exempt going forward, according to SEC financial disclosures. Neither of these closed cases involves the truck-driver per-mile pay claims at issue in Carlson, and neither has a claim to file today.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can drivers file a claim in the Carlson case right now?
No claims process exists yet because the case has not settled; it remains in active litigation over Swift's exemption defense.
Does class certification mean Carlson has already won?
No. Certification only allows the case to proceed as a group action; it does not decide whether Swift's pay practices violated the law.
Is the Slack v. Swift settlement still accepting claims?
No. That settlement's claims deadline passed on December 3, 2018, and it covered a different time period (2008–2017) than the current Carlson case.