172492P.pdf   03/22/2019  Walter Engelhardt  v.  Qwest Corporation
   U.S. Court of Appeals Case No:  17-2492
   U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota - Minneapolis   
   [PUBLISHED] [Smith, Author, with Loken and Gruender, Circuit Judges] 
   Civil case - Fair Labor Standards Act. In action alleging a FLSA 
   retaliation claim, defendant provided a legitimate, non-retaliatory ground 
   - lack of productivity - for terminating plaintiff, and he failed to show 
   the stated ground was a pretext for retaliation for his participation in 
   an earlier FLSA law suit; with respect to plaintiff's Minnesota 
   Whistleblower's Act claim, the district court did not err in determining 
   he was an independent contractor and lacked standing to bring the claim; 
   claim for tortious interference was properly dismissed as neither 
   defendant had violated federal or state law or committed an act that was 
   independently tortious.