COMPANY'S EX-WORKERS PLAN TO SUE; MICROPOLIS CONTINGENT WANTS SEVERANCE PAY.Byline: Ben Sullivan Daily News Staff Writer Former employees of Micropolis USA Inc. are preparing to sue the defunct disk drive maker's parent company to collect severance pay Severance Pay Compensation that an employer gives to someone who is about to lose their job. Notes: Severance pay is not always paid to employees. It depends on the situation in which the employee is losing their job and whether legislation requires severance to be paid. stemming from the closure of the Chatsworth plant in November. David Tovey, a former Micropolis purchasing manager A Purchasing Manager is an employee within a company, business or other organization who is responsible at some level for buying or approving the acquisition of goods and services needed by the company. who is spearheading the effort, said a group of employees will collect money tonight to retain Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. attorney David Mallen to represent them against Singapore Technologies Inc. ``We're meeting at Carrow's (restaurant) in Chatsworth . . . and are telling people to bring their checkbooks,'' Tovey said. Last week, former employees were sent a letter by Micropolis offering vacation pay and three weeks of severance in exchange for agreeing not to sue the company for more benefits. Tovey and others, however, say the offer is less than what the employees are owed. Singapore Technologies closed its wholly owned Micropolis research and development center Nov. 10, citing losses and fierce competition in the disk drive market. The firm's 325 employees were given an hour's notice to leave the facility. A skeleton crew The term skeleton crew is used to indicate the minimum number of personnel needed to operate and maintain an item at its most simple operating requirements, such as a ship or business, during an emergency and, at the same time, to keep vital functions operating. of about 20 employees has since been brought back to complete the shutdown. The remaining former employees, however, say they have not been paid for accrued vacation time, are due 60 days of back pay under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act) is a United States law protecting employees, their families, and communities by requiring most employers with 100 or more employees to provide sixty- (60) calendar-day advance notification of plant closings and mass of 1988, and want their health care benefits extended beyond their Dec. 31 expiration. Micropolis filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in mid-November, and a judge is expected to hear the case today in downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area. The sprawling, multi-centered megacity is such that its downtown core is often considered just another district like Hollywood or . Allen said it is unclear what effect the bankruptcy filing could have on extending health care benefits, but that Micropolis and, in turn, Singapore Technologies must pay the back wages. Singapore Technologies officials could not be reached for comment on the threatened suit. An answering machine at the Chatsworth facility says consulting firm Coopers & Lybrand has been retained to liquidate Micropolis, though a Coopers official said the firm is not representing Micropolis or Singapore Technologies in its bankruptcy proceedings bankruptcy proceedings n. the bankruptcy procedure is: a) filing a petition (voluntary or involuntary) to declare a debtor person or business bankrupt, or, under Chapter 11 or 13, to allow reorganization or refinancing under a plan to meet the debts of the party . Singapore Technologies is a Singapore government-held conglomerate with holdings in real estate, defense, technology and other industries. |
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