JCCEO Wage Theft Class Action Lawsuit Overview:
- Why: JCCEO laid off hundreds of its workers in November 2021 and allegedly failed to provide proper warning or pay earned wages.
- Who: A former employee is suing the Jefferson County Committee for Economic Opportunity (JCCEO).
- Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in Alabama federal court.
A former employee filed a class action lawsuit against the Jefferson County Committee for Economic Opportunity (JCCEO) for laying off workers without proper notice and withholding earned wages.
On Nov. 24, 2021, JCCEO laid off approximately 500 employees due to “financial mismanagement,” according to court documents. Among those laid-off employees is the lead plaintiff of the class action, Veronica Kemp. Kemp was a full-time teacher’s assistant for JCCEO, a nonprofit organization meant to provide services to low-income residents of Jefferson County, Ala.
Kemp seeks to represent all former employees of JCCEO who were terminated and/or laid off on Nov. 24, 2021, without 60 days advance notice as is required by the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act.
JCCEO Goes Back on Promise to Pay Wages
The class action lawsuit argues that JCCEO could have easily informed employees of the impending layoffs at least 60 days in advance but failed to do so.
“JCCEO closely monitored and supervised these employees on a continual basis and had means to alert them of any facility closure or cessation of operations,” the complaint claims.
Around the time of the announcement, JCCEO allegedly informed employees they would not receive paychecks for the current or prior weeks’ work. On Dec. 1, 2021, JCCEO officials said that the business would pay the laid-off employees their wages earned up to Dec. 12, 2021, according to the complaint. However, JCCEO has since rescinded that promise and has not made any payments to its laid-off former workers.
Kemp seeks civil penalties of at most $500 per day per site for each day the JCCEO failed to pay the class employees, awards of maximum benefits allowed by the WARN Act, attorneys’ costs and prejudgment interest.
Were you among the laid-off employees of JCCEO? Have you faced a similar situation? Share your experience in the comments below!
The plaintiff is represented by Roderick T. Cooks and Lee D. Winston of Winston Cooks, LLC and Eric L. Welch-Guster of The Guster Law Firm, LLC.
The JCCEO Wage Theft Class Action Lawsuit is Kemp v. Jefferson County Committee for Economic Opportunity, Case No. 2:21-cv-01609-AMM, in the US District Court for the Northern District of Alabama Southern Division.
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