Judge Denies Class Action Claims Against Tech Companies

Apple, Google and others accused of collusion to keep wages low

A federal judge has dealt a setback to a group of people who allege that Apple, Google and five other technology companies formed an illegal cartel to hold down wages and reduce the chances of losing their best engineers.

In a ruling released Friday, Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, Calif., denied a request to certify their lawsuit as a class action seeking damages on behalf of tens of thousands of employees. She concludes the employers' alleged collusion may have affected workers in too many different ways to justify lumping the individual claims together.