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Reservist sues over lost job
Seabee Petty Officer Second Class Erik Balodis once hoped to retire at the company he grew to love. But those aspirations were crushed when automotive parts retail giant Pep Boys fired him in June 2002 after he returned from Navy Reserve training. Company executives contend they laid him off because of poor performance. But Balodis claims the retail chain sacked him because of his military service. He is suing the company for $5 million in lost wages and punitive damages, but hopes the lawsuit will help others. âIf nothing else, itâs going to send a tremendous lesson to the work force and also mostly to Pep Boys to save maybe more people that this might have been happening to,â said Balodis, who is in southern Spain for annual Reserve training.
| I's my impression that they're required by law to keep his job for him... |
His case has attracted some headlines and put greater attention on worker rights as the military leans heavily on reservists and Guardsmen to help fight the war on terrorism and rebuild Iraq. The battle also has spawned concerns that companies might penalize some of the tens of thousands of part-time soldiers when they return to their full-time jobs. The lawsuit alleges that Pep Boys fired Balodis because his Reserve duties kept him from his job as a district manager in Tucson, Ariz., adding that the retail chain pressured him to choose between his military service and work. Hours after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, the company reportedly sent a letter to the Navy requesting that Balodis not be called up because he was too important. When Balodis returned from a Navy exercise on June 27, 2002, the company fired him for âjob abandonment.â
EFL
Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2004-02-04 |
