Scott Bloch, the former Bush administration official who is appealing his sentence to one month in prison for misdemeanor contempt of Congress, has filed a class action lawsuit against the private security firm Blackwater, alleging they’ve withheld benefits from workers they classified as independent contractors.
Mike Scarcella reports that Bloch’s suit was filed on behalf of four former security contractors working for Blackwater (now Xe Services) who say they were improperly classified as independent contractors.
In a statement posted on his website, Bloch said that it was “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.”
“These brave individuals who worked in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Afghani Enduring Freedom, deserve better than to be turned away without health insurance, pension benefits, unemployment benefits, and other withholding afforded to Blackwater’s other employees,” Bloch said.
A federal judge ruled in April that Bloch, whose sentence for contempt of Congress was connected to his use of “Geeks on Call” to scrub his government computer, can remain free pending appeal of his case. Full coverage here.
Ryan J. Reilly
Ryan J. Reilly is a D.C.-based reporter for TPM. Prior to joining TPM, he worked for a news website covering the Justice Department and was a researcher for Bloomberg News. His email address is ryan(at)talkingpointsmemo.com.
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