Unions Seek to Block Google’s Purchase of Spirit Employment Records; DOL Sues Oklahoma Coffee Chain Over Tip and Child-Labor Allegations

Unions press bankruptcy court to block sale of Spirit employee files

Unions say the sale could give Google access to internal communications, payroll records, and files related to union activity and collective bargaining. Those documents, they contend, include sensitive personnel information that bears directly on worker privacy and bargaining rights.

Google told a bankruptcy privacy ombudsman that the purchase would not include personally identifiable information. But the objections and the ombudsman review highlight two legal gaps: most state privacy laws do not protect employee data, and there is no established bankruptcy‑law framework that specifically governs the protection of worker information in asset sales.

Former bankruptcy judge Robert Drain is quoted in the coverage saying the court may press Google to show how it will scrub personnel records without imposing meaningful cost on the buyer. That signal suggests the judge could require more concrete protections or remediation steps before clearing the sale.

If a purchaser can acquire internal personnel files through a bankruptcy sale with minimal limits, employers and workers could lose control over sensitive records that document wages, discipline, union communications, and other matters central to labor rights. The outcome of the September 30 hearing may shape how courts treat worker data in future bankruptcy asset sales.

DOL sues Not Your Average Joe for alleged tip and child‑labor violations

Separately, the U.S. Department of Labor filed a lawsuit against Oklahoma coffee chain Not Your Average Joe in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. The complaint alleges that employees were denied proper wages and tips, and that minors worked in roles prohibited by federal child‑labor law.

The suit combines wage, tip, and child‑labor claims that can lead to back pay awards, penalties, and injunctive relief. Payment practices such as delayed tip distribution and improper pooling increase the risk of liability under the Fair Labor Standards Act when they reduce workers' take‑home pay or obscure tip ownership.

• September 30 bankruptcy hearing in the Southern District of New York over Google's proposed $10 million purchase of Spirit's business and employment data.
• Developments in the DOL lawsuit in the Western District of Oklahoma as the department pursues compensation for the 320 identified workers.

Both matters raise practical questions for workers, unions, and employers about the handling of personnel data and wage practices under existing law.