Q: What is a class action lawsuit?
A: A class action lawsuit is a legal claim filed by a group of individuals (the “class”) against a defendant (often a company or organization) who is alleged to have harmed them in a similar way. This allows many people with similar claims to pursue compensation collectively, rather than individually.
Q: What is the lawsuit about?
A: The Class Action lawsuit alleges that Hormel:
- Made employees use contractual vacation benefits to receive pay during ESST absences.
- Willfully failed and refused to provide employees with the ESST benefit accruals to which they are entitled for their work between January 1, 2024 and March 1, 2025.
- Refused to provide most employees with ESST benefits that they earned in 2024. Hormel then denied those employees their statutory right to carry over their accrued, unused ESST benefits into calendar year 2025.
- Failed to give all or most employees any of the ESST benefits that they earned in January and February 2025.
Q: What will I get if we win?
A: The value of the potential award will be determined through the process of the lawsuit. We cannot speculate on the award at this time.
Q: How long will this take?
A: This class action lawsuit could take as long as 2-8 years. Litigation is unpredictable, and just as there are no guaranteed results, there is no certain timeline.
Q: Is the Union suing Hormel?
A: No, our Union is not suing Hormel. Members that work at, or have worked at Hormel have filed this lawsuit. Our Union is financing these members’ lawsuit.
