Au Pair Class Action Could Upend Decades-Old Program

• The lawsuit, brought on behalf of 90,000 plaintiffs, claims sponsor agencies have conspired to keep wages low.

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A newly certified class, estimated to total more than 90,000 foreign workers, is alleging that a wage-fixing conspiracy artificially depressed earnings in the U.S. Au Pair program. The lawsuit, one of a number of efforts by plaintiffs’ lawyers to use antitrust laws to target treatment of employees, represents a challenge to the Au Pair program overseen by the U.S. Department of State.

Colorado-based federal district judge Christine Arguello certified the class on Feb. 2, ...