Beals

Brent Beals sued his former employer, Kiewit Pacific Company, and won a jury verdict on his state law claims for breach of contract and negligent misrepresentation. We affirm on the negligent misrepresentation claim but reverse on the breach of contract claim on the ground that the contract claim is preempted.

I

Brent Beals was working full-time as a concrete pump operator for Merli Concrete Company in Southern California when Stuart Stephens of Kiewit Pacific Company (Kiewit) offered him a job as a concrete pumper on Kiewit’s Honolulu airport project. Stephens informed Beals that the airport project would entail an “enormous” amount of overtime and that it would last at least two years. Stephens then faxed Beals a “move letter” that described Beals’ position as a forklift/pump operator, agreed to employ Beals for the duration of the project, and promised to pay Beals a weekly subsistence allowance and moving expenses in addition to his hourly wage. The move letter stated that similar terms were offered only to a few select individuals and requested that Beals keep the terms confidential. Beals signed the move letter on February 13,1991.

At the time that Beals signed the move…