Striking employees sue Coke over canceled health care coverage
SEATTLE -- The 500 striking employees of Coca-Cola have filed a class-action lawsuit against the company over their canceled health care coverage.
The suit filed on Friday alleges the company violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), a federal law.
A Coca-Cola spokesman said the company had not yet reviewed the complaint, and refused to comment.
The company canceled the employees' health care plan on Tuesday - just one day after the disgruntled workers, who are members of six local chapters of the Teamsters, walked off the job claiming the company failed to bargain in good faith.
The workers said Coke canceled their health care through the end of August even though they've already paid their premium. The Teamsters, who claim the company is trying to eliminate health care for retirees and to raise employees' health care premiums by 800 percent, said union members expected to have health coverage until the end of the month.
"My wife had a kidney transplant two years ago. When Coke canceled our health care, they cut off her anti-rejection medication. This shows me that Coke doesn't care about its employees," said Bill Mauhl, a 34-year Coke employee, in a written statement.
"Cutting off the medical benefits to more than 500 workers, knowing that many of them rely on those benefits on a day-to-day basis and will be irreparably harmed if they lose those benefits is a brutal, full-scale attack by Coke on its own workers," said Tracey A. Thompson, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 117 and chief negotiator for Washington Teamsters United.
However, Bob Phillips, Coca-Cola's vice president of public affairs, said the company did not cancel the workers' health care coverage as punishment, but rather because the striking workers are not eligible as long as they refuse to work for the company. He said the workers were paid only through Aug. 14, and a fee scheduled to be deducted from employees' Sept. 3 paycheck was to cover health care from Aug. 15 to Aug. 28. Because the coverage has been canceled, Phillips said no medical deductions will be made on the next paycheck.
The Teamsters and Coke are scheduled to return to the negotiation table next week.
The suit filed on Friday alleges the company violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), a federal law.
A Coca-Cola spokesman said the company had not yet reviewed the complaint, and refused to comment.
The company canceled the employees' health care plan on Tuesday - just one day after the disgruntled workers, who are members of six local chapters of the Teamsters, walked off the job claiming the company failed to bargain in good faith.
The workers said Coke canceled their health care through the end of August even though they've already paid their premium. The Teamsters, who claim the company is trying to eliminate health care for retirees and to raise employees' health care premiums by 800 percent, said union members expected to have health coverage until the end of the month.
"My wife had a kidney transplant two years ago. When Coke canceled our health care, they cut off her anti-rejection medication. This shows me that Coke doesn't care about its employees," said Bill Mauhl, a 34-year Coke employee, in a written statement.
"Cutting off the medical benefits to more than 500 workers, knowing that many of them rely on those benefits on a day-to-day basis and will be irreparably harmed if they lose those benefits is a brutal, full-scale attack by Coke on its own workers," said Tracey A. Thompson, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 117 and chief negotiator for Washington Teamsters United.
However, Bob Phillips, Coca-Cola's vice president of public affairs, said the company did not cancel the workers' health care coverage as punishment, but rather because the striking workers are not eligible as long as they refuse to work for the company. He said the workers were paid only through Aug. 14, and a fee scheduled to be deducted from employees' Sept. 3 paycheck was to cover health care from Aug. 15 to Aug. 28. Because the coverage has been canceled, Phillips said no medical deductions will be made on the next paycheck.
The Teamsters and Coke are scheduled to return to the negotiation table next week.