Antitrust Lawsuit Filed Over Alleged Conspiracy Designed to Depress Wages for Veterinary Interns, Residents

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A proposed class action lawsuit alleges that a litany of for-profit veterinary companies, practices, associations and teaching institutions have engaged in a long-running conspiracy to depress the wages of veterinary interns and residents.

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The 26-page antitrust lawsuit claims that the conspiracy among the defendants, including the American Association of Veterinary Clinicians (AAVC), has caused veterinary interns and residents to endure harsh working conditions, poor hours and compensation often below the level of a living wage.

The class action lawsuit accuses the defendants of violating the federal Sherman Act by engaging in a scheme to “eliminate competition in the market for veterinary resident and intern services,” namely through the Veterinary Internship and Residency Matching Program (VIRMP).

Related Reading: Lawsuits for Veterinary Residents and Interns

According to the complaint, VIRMP, or the Match Program, is a centralized allocation system through which veterinary resident and intern applicants are assigned to a single, specific position at an employer participating in the program. Per the case, the Match Program prohibits the negotiation of salaries between applicants and prospective employers and imposes “strict limitations” on applicants’ mobility and choice.

The case explains that the Match Program is updated with new internship and residency openings by employers every September, with the openings published online by administrators throughout October and made available to applicants every November through January. Per the suit, these applications are then run through an assessment algorithm developed by defendant Solution Innovations as part of a contract with the AAVC. In March, each accepted applicant is offered only one position on a day the program calls “Match Day,” the lawsuit shares.

The lawsuit alleges that, in agreeing to the Match Program’s terms of service, employers and teaching institutions “agree not to negotiate with applicants, agree not to make commitments or contracts with applicants prior to the notification of match results, and agree not to pursue or offer employment to applicants matched elsewhere by the Match Program unless the applicant has obtained a written release from his or her matched employer.”

The Match Program also allegedly strictly enforces these terms, with the complaint claiming that “harsh sanctions” are imposed on institutions or employers who violate the terms, including a minimum three-year ban on participating in Match Program services.

According to the suit, the defendants, listed at the bottom of this post, also exchanged details on salaries offered through individual internship and residency programs. In addition, the parties, through an annual survey of veterinary intern and resident pay, analyze and share wage data among employers so as to provide “guidance,” producing wages that are “far lower than comparable veterinary positions” that do not participate in VIRMP.

The Match Program is supposedly used in exclusivity by over 90 percent of veterinary institutions for their intern and resident hiring needs.

Moreover, the terms of service for the Match Program allegedly bind applicants to accept whichever employment opportunity they are matched with by the program, further restricting their mobility and choice. This also allows employers and institutions more room to engage in unfair pay and labor practices, the suit charges.

The veterinary resident and intern class action lawsuit looks to cover all individuals in the U.S. who obtained employment as vet interns or residents through the Match Program at any time from May 30, 2021 through the date the defendants’ allegedly anticompetitive conduct ends.

Named as defendants in the class action lawsuit are:

• American Association of Veterinary Clinicians;
• Solution Innovations, Inc.;
• American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges;
• The American Veterinary Medical Association;
• VCA Animal Hospitals, Inc.;
• Ethos Veterinary Health LLC;
• Pathway Vet Alliance, LLC d/b/a Thrive Pet Healthcare;
• MedVet Associates, LLC;
• Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania;
• University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine;
• Trustees of Tufts College;
• Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine;
• Cornell University;
• Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine;
• University of Florida Board of Trustees;
• The College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Florida;
• Ohio State University;
• OSU College of Veterinary Medicine;
• Texas A&M University System; and
• Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Science.

Learn all about the legal process: What is a class action lawsuit?