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Former Staffers Sue Bloomberg After Layoffs Despite Promise of Pay Through November

Former Staffers Sue Bloomberg After Layoffs Despite Promise of Pay Through November

“The plaintiffs and the other putative class members did not know that the defendant’s representations were false, and would not have accepted their positions with Mike Bloomberg 2020 in the absence of the campaign’s false representations.”

https://youtu.be/FyEDacBzbLk

Former workers of Michael Bloomberg’s short-lived presidential campaign filed lawsuits against him in New York City.

Bloomberg promised them jobs and benefits through November in several vital states, even if he did not get the nomination.

Bloomberg decided not to make his campaign “into a new inside group.” Instead, he chose to transfer $18 million to the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

Those who worked for Bloomberg must reapply for positions within the DNC. Officials already said the DNC would not give them preferential treatment.

Donna Wood, named as the plaintiff in one lawsuit, worked in Miami for Bloomberg’s campaign. She “is seeking a minimum of $48 million in damages, argues that Mr. Bloomberg’s campaign ‘fraudulently induced’ staffers into working for him and failed to pay staff overtime wages, in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.” More from The Wall Street Journal:

“Thereafter, in contravention of its promise of continued employment through November 2020 and in the face of a world-wide pandemic and likely global recession, Defendant terminated the vast majority of its (field organizers) and other campaign employees,” Ms. Wood’s complaint filed Monday states.

Sally Abrahamson, a lawyer for Outten & Golden who is representing Ms. Wood, said she had already received calls from dozens of former staffers saying “they want to be an active participant in this case,” she said.

A representative for the campaign said in a statement that Mr. Bloomberg paid staff and offered benefits that “were much more generous than any other campaign this year.” The representative also said that staff worked 39 days on average and were given weeks of severance and health care originally through March, and later through April after a separate fund was created in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Alexis Sklair, Sterling Rettke, and Nathaniel Brown worked on the campaign in Georgia, Washington, and Utah filed the second lawsuit.

In their lawsuit, they provided details of “opportunities they gave up to accept jobs with” the campaign:

“The statements by Mike Bloomberg 2020 that the staffers would perform both primary and general election work for the campaign were material facts that directly influenced the plaintiffs’ and the other staffers’ decisions to enter into an employment relationship with Mike Bloomberg 2020 and perform work for the campaign for months instead of pursuing other work opportunities,” the second complaint states.

“The plaintiffs and the other putative class members did not know that the defendant’s representations were false, and would not have accepted their positions with Mike Bloomberg 2020 in the absence of the campaign’s false representations,” it adds.

The Wall Street Journal reported that material from the campaign stated “employment through November wasn’t included in the contracts signed by the staffers, which specified they were ‘at-will’ employees who could be terminated.” Also:

Some of the hiring materials, however, included paperwork suggesting staffers could stay on payroll through November if they were willing to relocate.

The contract also classified the positions as “exempt from the overtime provisions of federal and applicable state laws,” according to Ms. Wood’s complaint.

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Comments

notamemberofanyorganizedpolicital | March 23, 2020 at 7:10 pm

Bloomberg can just sic Nancy’s Psycho Daughter on his EX staffers.

“Nancy Pelosi’s Daughter Celebrates Violence and Suffering Toward Political Opposition During Coronavirus Pandemic…”

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2020/03/23/nancy-pelosis-daughter-celebrates-violence-and-suffering-toward-political-opposition-during-coronavirus-pandemic/

He seems like the kind of guy that will gladly spend way more in legal fees than paying what he promised his ex-staffers. With him it isn’t about money anymore, it is about running his kingdom by the kings whims, peasants have no say in these matters.

Mike Will Get It Done. Sorta.

Morning Sunshine | March 23, 2020 at 7:34 pm

aren’t these the same campaign workers who were campaigning for Bernie while on the clock for Mini Mike?

Surprise, surprise!

LOLOLOLOL at the staffers. Now they know what it’s like to have to listen to democrat promises and then see democrat actions.
Tough luck suckers, keep voting for democrats you idiots.

Greedy Mike ‘Dadddy Warbucks’ Bloomberg didn’t make billions by giving away money he didn’t have to, regardless of what he may have verbally maybe, sorta, promised. Just ‘good business’ you know. Nothing personal. The schmucks should have insisted on a written contract, right Mike?

This would be like the Red Guards suing Mao Tse-Tung because they weren’t happy with their 401k plans, or the Einsatzgrupppen suing Reinhard Heydrich for more vacation time. F—those guys. I wish nothing but the worst for them all.

“and would not have accepted their positions with Mike Bloomberg 2020 in the absence of the campaign’s false representations”

Promissory estoppel.

Subotai Bahadur | March 23, 2020 at 9:11 pm

You have to remember that any Leftist who believes he has wealth and power does not believe that he can be bound by the law. And Bloomberg is both rich and powerful. The workers are scrod [past pluperfect subjunctive] and may meet with tragic accidents as examples of resisting the Politburo.

Subotai Bahadur

The Friendly Grizzly | March 23, 2020 at 9:51 pm

What did they expect from an evil money-grubbing capitalist pig like Bloomberg?!?!?

Lucifer Morningstar | March 23, 2020 at 9:52 pm

A representative for the campaign said in a statement that Mr. Bloomberg paid staff and offered benefits that “were much more generous than any other campaign this year.” The representative also said that staff worked 39 days on average and were given weeks of severance and health care originally through March, and later through April after a separate fund was created in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Doesn’t matter what they actually did. The employment literature promised employment through November at the rate of $6,000/mnth with full health, dental, and vision insurance as an inducement to accept employment. You failed to provide those benefits. You owe, you owe it’s off to court you go.

This is a case where he really could give each of them $1 million; and may have to.

An oral promise for job longevity, moderated and mitigated by other terms of employment, is an enforceable contract if a year or less in length, including ratification.
Easy case.

harleycowboy | March 24, 2020 at 6:07 pm

Verbal agreements aren’t worth the paper they’re written on.

    Lucifer Morningstar in reply to harleycowboy. | March 24, 2020 at 11:49 pm

    Except it wasn’t a “verbal agreement” but was allegedly written in the recruiting material given to prospective employees. Guaranteed employment through Nov. 2020 at $6,000/mnth with full health, dental, and vision insurance. So if that is the case I’d say it would probably be cheaper for Mini-Mike to settle the lawsuit now before a jury nails his ass to the wall and makes him pay big time.