Benefits July 6, 2001

Seventeen Soda Suits Still Unsettled

July 6, 2001 (PLANSPONSOR.com) Seventeen current and former employees of the Coca-Cola Company have turned their noses up at a $192.5 million settlement in a class action discrimination suit against the soft drink giant.

Reported by

Camilla Klein

The workers will go forward with individual lawsuits, according to law firm Gary, Williams, Parenti, Finney, Lewis, McManus, Watson & Sperando, who chose not to appeal a district court order approving the settlement of the suit filed in 1999 by a group of black workers.

Opting out

Those opting out of the settlement include:

four plaintiffs in the original suit,
three people who filed a separate bias suit last year, and
a further 10 others who will file suits within 30 to 45 days.

The suit, in which workers alleged that Coca-Cola discriminated against them in pay, promotions, and performance reviews, was tentatively settled last year, although the company consistently denied the charges.

The settlement covers about 2,200 current and former workers, who would each receive about $39,000.