Attorneys Offer Conflicting Views on Class Action Lawsuit Filed by Kentucky Candle Workers

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In the lawsuit that is being filed over the death of eight Kentucky candle factory workers, lawyers are conflicted as to what the possible outcomes could be, as well as the merits of the case. 

Workers at the Mayfield Consumer Products candle factory in Kentucky, where eight people were killed by a tornado that struck on Dec. 10, 2021, have filed a class action lawsuit against their employer. 

One lawyer who Top Class Actions spoke to believes that the plaintiffs should actually be seeking worker’s compensation, with the only exception requiring proof that the employer had a deliberate intention to cause injury or death. 

Filed in the Graves Circuit Court in Kentucky by Elijah Johnson on behalf of 109 other “similarly situated employees,” the lawsuit alleges that the candle factory required them to continue working, even with the threat of an expected and dangerous tornado.

The complaint alleges that the candle factory failed to provide a workplace free from serious recognized hazards, which is a violation of Kentucky Occupational Safety and Health Law. In addition, it alleges that the candle factory showed flagrant indifference to the rights of the plaintiffs.

The suit alleges that the defendant had up to three and half hours before the tornado hit its place of business to allow its employees to leave its worksite as a safety precaution.

The candle factory allegedly threatened to fire any employees who left due to the approaching tornado, just hours before it destroyed the factory, the lawsuit claims.

Lead Plaintiff Johnson, a 20-year-old employee told NBC News that he was working in the back of the building when several employees wanting to head home walked in to speak with supervisors. Johnson said he asked to leave and was told he’d be fired if he did so. 

One employee claimed she was also threatened with disciplinary action if she went home early on that night. A spokesman for Mayfield Consumer Products has insisted that employees were free to leave anytime.

According to D. Craig Lamb, a lawyer with the firm Goldberg Simpson, he doesn’t foresee the eight plaintiffs having an issue with getting the class action lawsuit certified, but believes that they’ll be unsuccessful in the merits of the lawsuit.

Kentucky law, Lamb said, has something called the exclusive remedy doctrine, which stipulates that if an employer is carrying any workers’ compensation insurance — which a company like Mayfield Consumer Products would have to carry — then the remedy for a case like this one would be to seek workers compensation.

There’s only one exception to that, which requires showing that the employer had a deliberate intention to cause injury or death. This is a very high bar to meet and the likelihood that they would be able to meet that bar to me seems unlikely, according to Lamb. 

“Aside from the fact that really to even get to the point where this case would be considered on the merits, the workers compensation exclusive remedy doctrine would mandate that first you file administrative action and seek administrative remedies which the plaintiffs would have to first exhaust before they had the right to even bring up such a suit,” Lamb said.

Jeff Orenstein, a partner with the Arias Sanguinetti Wang & Torrijos law firm, said employers have a heightened responsibility to ensure the safety of their employees. 

“​​If the danger was obvious, and the employer failed to act, and put his employees in danger because of it, it sounds like a legitimate claim,” Orenstein told Top Class Actions.

 The factory showed “flagrant indifference to the rights of Plaintiff Johnson and to the other similarly situated Plaintiffs with a subjective awareness that such conduct will result in human death and/or bodily injuries,” the lawsuit claims.

Workers were allegedly not informed of the danger of the incoming tornado and supervisors did not tell them what was really going on, according to the court filing.

“Of course, we all know with all cases, the devil’s in the details,” Orenstein said. 

Troy Propes, CEO of Mayfield Consumer Products, released a statement saying the company has hired a team of experts to review the actions of factory management the night of the storm, and will give all employees $1,000 to help cover their immediate expenses.

“We’re confident that our team leaders acted entirely appropriately and were, in fact, heroic in their efforts to shelter our employees,” the statement said.

The employees who survived are seeking a jury trial, compensation, punitive damages and legal fees, all with interest.

The death toll from Mayfield’s candle factory is eight people.

The remaining 102 workers who were on duty when the tornado struck were eventually accounted for in a process that took three days due to the chaos brought on by the natural disaster.

“This is a tragic loss that no doubt has left an impact on the entire community. This lawsuit is just one example of the potential exposure the factory owners would have if the allegations are true,” Paul Kiesel, former president of the Los Angeles County Bar Association and a partner in the Kiesel law firm, told Top Class Actions. 

The Mayfield candle factory wasn’t the only workplace affected by the tornados; an Amazon warehouse in Illinois collapsed after it was struck by a tornado in early December, leaving six people dead and another hospitalized.

Amazon said workers at the warehouse had little time to prepare when the National Weather Service declared a tornado warning. The tornado arrived soon after, collapsing both sides of the warehouse and caving in its roof.

Amazon has pledged to assist workers and their families affected by the tragedy, including donating $1 million to the Edwardsville Community Foundation.

The federal Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) said it has opened an investigation into the incident, although no class actions have been filed as of yet. 

The family of DeAndre Morrow, a 28-year-old who was killed after a tornado struck the Amazon facility, has filed a lawsuit. The family’s lawyers are seeking to determine if Amazon did everything in its power to warn employees of the incoming danger from the tornado and provide a designated safe area for employees to shelter.Employers have a responsibility to provide employees with safe working conditions that comply with OSHA standards. It’s now up to the courts to decide whether Mayfield Consumer Products and Amazon are liable for the deaths of their workers.

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