US lawsuit alleges Blackwater failed to pay benefits

[cory777]

Source: AFP

WASHINGTON — Four former employees of Blackwater, the scandal-plagued security firm now called Xe, have filed a $60 million class action lawsuit claiming the firm failed to pay health and pension benefits to its employees.

Their lawyer, Scott Bloch, said Wednesday that Xe improperly classified thousands of its employees as independent contractors, allowing the company to avoid "millions of dollars in taxes, withholding and payments of benefits."

"Blackwater made hundreds of millions of dollars from taxpayers and hired thousands of former veterans of military service and police officers," said Bloch in a statement.

"It is a grave injustice to them who were mistreated and left without any health insurance or other benefits for their families, and left to fend for themselves in paying into Social Security and Medicare," he said.

Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hlf3wQyICosE3TFtPrtECbNdeJ_g?docId=CNG.e3a9d5e807ecdf4c688c40ef9ac6acc5.c11

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[sakabatou]

1. New name, still evil

[Angry Dragon]

2. The IRS needs to get in on this

violation of Federal tax laws

We need to attack Dubai and roust him..............

[Plucketeer]

3. Yet another exemplary favorite of the Right.

:puke:

[Rageneau]

4. Lie down with dogs and get up with Xe

I find it hard to have sympathy for people who knowingly work for mercenaries. OTOH, this is really just another case of management vs. labor and I always take labor's side.

[jberryhill]

5. Awww... Too bad, so sad

Backswallow is treating its employees unfairly?

I know I left my Givashit around here somewhere...

[SHRED]

6. Say what?.

People hired on with this murderous outfit and expected what??

I understand that if Xe broke the law then they should be held accountable but I have little to no sympathy for anyone signing up with this filthy corporation.

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[TxVietVet]

7. I'm not surprised. Should I be?

A pedigree conservanazi mercenarie group like Sewerwater is screwing it's employees. I'll be danged. I never would have figured out an evil company like that would f*ck it's employees. Promising tons of money to a mercenary and not paying him. Evil against evil. Tough shit.

[gratuitous]

8. I wonder what Xe's bid for the government contract specified?

Did Xe claim it needed so much money for the contract because of payroll expenses, and then turn around and chisel the help it hired? Because that would just be oh so wrong. I mean, what happened to all that lovely, lovely Treasury money if it didn't go to the actual mercenaries?