thomas and solomon nrp class action

Unfortunately, the Postal Service continues to dispute every single claim. Our attorneys have just learned that the EEOC has begun sending out notices to claimants regarding the EEOCs website related to this case. Denver, CO 80202. We keep track of our clients' contact information, and we can provide that to USPS or the EEOC Administrative Judge when they need it. Whether you get any money and how much is determined by the EEOCs decision on your claim. We believe that the Administrative Judge's news from today means that we should see some real progress in 2023 toward a final result for your claim in this case. EEOC guidance sets forth an orderly process for the Administrative Judge to review and adjudicate disputed individual claims after class-wide discrimination has been found. Under our proposal, the claimants who have already obtained partial concessions from USPS will receive the benefit of that relief now, while continuing to seek full recovery through the normal EEOC claim-adjudication process set forth in the Case Management Order. We also noted that even their responses to the EEOC Administrative Judges questioning was further demonstration of their pattern of behavior: delay, deny, delay, deny. This is a good development, but a lengthy fight remains in order to obtain a just and fair result. The Judge said she will schedule the next conference after she evaluates the information provided in connection with todays call. Thank you. The Administrative Judge largely asked her questions of the Agency, and ordered that certain missing information be added to the spreadsheet promptly. In response to the Administrative Judges February Order setting out a process to review claims by the use of Special Masters, the Postal Service filed a motion seeking to both delay the case and encourage as many class members as possible to withdraw from the case. We have notched many milestone successes in this case since 2006. The best way to provide this information is to email us at nrpclassaction@theemploymentattorneys.com. The Judge stated that she is in the process of organizing all of the claim records, and that she hopes to begin reviewing the substance of those claims later this Spring. We need you to return the completed, signed Declaration form to us no later than March 25, 2019, in order for us to prepare and submit your complete claim package (including legal argument) to the EEOC Judge in a timely fashion. We have filed an extension request with the Judge. Your claim in this case is a personal asset. After that, the EEOC Administrative Judge assigned to this case will issue an order regarding the claims determination process. Even if the Postal Service dramatically changes its tactics by accepting the entirety of your claim, there may still remain complicated issues, such as the proper value of any back pay or interest due to you. We will file your Declaration (along with additional information and legal argument) to the EEOC Judge. Our offices argued that the Agencys failure to provide certain information fits a pattern of unnecessary delay on the Agencys part. Just do the best that you can with any information that you know. If you have any questions, please feel free to email us at nrpclassaction@theemploymentattorneys.com or call us at 585-272-0540. Phase 1 Class Counsel will seek further intervention from the EEOC in the event the Agency does not resolve the noted deficiencies. Washington, DC: A $17.3 million settlement has been reached in the discrimination class action brought against The U.S. If you have questions that are not answered on the instructions or on this website, please call 585-272-0540. Please continue to monitor this website for status updates. If you have already hired our firms to represent you, we will be filing a legal brief in support of your claim. This decision by EEOC-OFO means that the case remains fully before the EEOC Administrative Judge, and that she can use her discretion to find an appropriate method to have the claims reviewed and decided. The . An update will be provided following the May 12, 2022 status conference. To the extent The 30% contingency fee therefore covers the additional work we will perform on your behalf to help you get any money and other relief you may be entitled to receive as a class member. As a result of our identification of various processes and systems that could easily be utilized to gather the information needed by the EEOC, the Agency was ordered to provide an update to the EEOC Administrative Judge within a week as to their ability to access and produce such information. Again, if you have not yet provided us with a Disability Form (Supplemental Declaration Regarding Disability), you must provide that form to us right away so that it can be filed with the Judge by March 31. We are hopeful that these additional resources will assist the Administrative Judge in the evaluation of the more than 28,000 claims that were filed. On the other hand, if you have not yet retained Class Counsel to represent you in your individual claim, we will not include your name in our appeal from the FADs, and it will be necessary (in an abundance of caution) for you to file your own separate appeal notice to the EEOC before the deadline set forth in the FAD you receive. 520-2010-00280X; Agency No. However, before you turn down any relief, you should speak with Class Counsel to explore your options. The Postal Service will submit its response to our proposed Case Management Order in approximately 15 days. Due to these deficiencies and in the interest of ensuring that the spreadsheet is complete and accurate as ordered by the EEOC, the Administrative Judge granted a brief 30 day extension to complete their portion of the spreadsheet and to continue addressing deficiencies with the Agency. It is also expected that the Judge and the parties will discuss the large volume of information related to the claims process, and the possibility of organizing relevant information in an electronic spreadsheet format. 4. If you have any updated contact information and have not yet provided it to our office, please call us at 585-272-0540 or email us at NRPClassAction@theemploymentattorneys.com. 4B-140-0062-06. Second, the Administrative Judge noted that review of claims has begun, and that she hopes to begin, if possible, issuing orders and decisions on claims in the coming months! Activity 1. We understand any references by the EEOC Administrative Judge to the year 2020 was made in error and instead refers to 2022. It is also ok to provide a persons position title if you dont remember a persons name. Class Counsel has asked the EEOC Administrative Judge to reconsider, or at least delay the effect of, the recently-issued Case Management Order until after the scheduled March 20, 2019 status conference. Please continue to check this website for updates, and thanks as always for your support and patience throughout this lengthy legal process. The EEOC may award you up to a maximum of $300,000 for proven harm caused by the NRP, including damages for pain, suffering and emotional distress. As always, we greatly appreciate your support and patience throughout this process. There has been no confirmation yet from the EEOC judge on whether Special Masters will be used to review a number of the claims. Ms. We will post an update to this webpage as soon as a ruling is issued on this Motion. Thomas & Solomon has sent letters to members of the class in addition to USPS, which was required to notify those individuals of their eligibility to sign their names onto the suit within 10. We will not submit claim packages for claimants who have not retained our firms to represent them in the claims process. However, medical information can help support your claim for damages. Show the Postal Service that discrimination has consequences please submit a timely claim! We will work to ensure that the EEOC again swiftly rejects the improper appeal, and work to have the EEOC Administrative Judge press forward with an efficient review process without delay. My Manager told me that I might be sent to work for Walmart or another company. If you retain us, Class Counsel will review that information to ensure that you are provided all the relief you are due, and file an appeal if necessary in order to achieve that result. Postal Service, EEOC Case No. However, there is no indication at this time that the Agency is prepared to make any settlement offer to any individual claimant. Please do not give up on your claims for relief! For our clients, please provide your updated contact information to us. In order to access the recorded message, you will need to call a special phone number. In that case a final decision has been rendered in favor of the injured workers. The only way for an individual class member to receive any monetary recovery is to submit a timely claim package. These are strong words from the Judge, indicating her resolve to push forward with the claims process as fast as possible. Please continue to monitor our website for more updates in the coming weeks. To recap: in July 2020 the Judge issued an order setting up the use of Special Masters to speed up the claim review process, but USPS argued that the Judge lacked authority to use Special Masters and could not force USPS to pay for Special Masters; the Judges recent order, citing our legal briefing, brushed aside USPS objections. We do not know which claimants will have their claims selected for a hearing, how the EEOC will make those selections, or how the hearings will work. We will provide an update on this website when we learn more about the judge's decision regarding the process moving forward, and any other significant updates in the case. If you are a person who is hard of hearing or deaf, and you need an alternative method of receiving the information, please reach out to our office directly via email at nrpclassaction@theemploymentattorneys.com or by telephone at 585-272-0540. You should complete, sign and return the Declaration form to our offices as soon as possible. In submitting such a request, Phase 1 Class Counsel took this opportunity to alert the EEOC about the deficiencies in the Agencys portion of the spreadsheet. You can see the order by clicking here. The name of the case is McConnell v. U.S. To accommodate the requesting parties, the Administrative Judge extended the deadline to object until August 28, 2020. At Thomas & Solomon LLP, we forcefully protect those rights. In other words, a process starting with 50 claims can ramp up to 500 claims, and so on. We understand that some class members who submitted claims for individual relief have received response letters from the Postal Service. Again, do the best you can with the information you know. She said that not all claims will receive a hearing, but that the EEOC would choose certain claims to be heard by EEOC Administrative Judges. During the coming weeks, we will not only be analyzing the spreadsheet for the Agency's compliance with the Judge's Order, but we will also be supplementing the spreadsheet with the information the EEOC has asked us to compile. (Even in that small subset of claims, the Postal Service has not yet paid a single dollar to any claimant, to the best of our knowledge.) We hope that we are now a big step closer to seeing actual relief provided to all those harmed by the NRP. The Administrative Judge held another video status conference with us today, and shared some news about the EEOC's plans for moving this case forward. We are mailing Claim Declaration forms to all of the Class Members who have retained our firms to represent them in the claims process. The judge stressed that the EEOC is actively weighing different ways to move the process forward. Once you return to us a signed completed Declaration form and any other documents supporting your claim, we will prepare a complete claim package (including legal argument) for submission to the EEOC Judge. Therefore, to the best of our understanding, it is very unlikely that USPS will pay you any money that must then be paid by you to OWCP. Accordingly, we are pressing forward on all fronts, and our goal remains as before: we seek full recovery for all our clients. 5. We hope the EEOC will act quickly to restore order to this process. Separate Legal Personality (SLP) is the basic tenet on which company law is premised. Yes. If you are unsatisfied with the Postal Service's final decision on your claim, which would come after the EEOC judge makes a determination, we would represent you in an appeal of that decision to the EEOC in Washington. Please note: if you previously sent supporting documents to us, you do not need to re-send those documents to us. The agency's health and human resources manager and Workers Compensation Office director ran an initiative, the National Reassessment Program (NRP), ostensibly designed to cut costs by eliminating non-productive 'make work' - jobs with no value to the organisation. We thank you all for your continued patience with this process. Important: the phone number referenced in the notice from the EEOC should read 1-877-465-4142, and the correct website link is as follows: https://www.eeoc-nrpphase2.com/Home/portalid/0. The Judges Order explains that the very question of FADs is premature, baffling and utterly irrelevant at this point. The Judge emphasized that the Postal Service was required to wait for the Judge to issue a decision on claimant relief before issuing a FAD. A significant amount of legal work remains to be accomplished as we press forward on every front. In any event, please rest assured that we will return all messages. And they have all been able to complete a review of large numbers of claims in a reasonable amount of time. If claimants appeal is heard by OFO, the Agencys decision can be upheld or the case can be remanded to an AJ in that claimants geographical area to determine damages. The NRP has been rolled out in most USPS districts across the nation. Postal Service by employees with disabilities. The EEOC does not require any particular format for medical information; medical reports, print-outs, and medical notes may all be provided. For example, a family member might be able to provide a short statement confirming what you experienced at that time, and explaining that you were forced to leave your job long before you planned on leaving.In sum, by providing additional accurate information to the EEOC Judge regarding your experience, you can help the Judge understand your constructive discharge claim. nrp class action: 7.82%: nrp class action settlement: 5.18%: Domain Registration Data. After we receive your completed, signed Declaration, we will include your NRP file, as well as any documents that you may have provided to our office in the past or with your Declaration. As a reminder, if you have any additional documents that you would like to be included in the final production to the Administrative Judge, and you have not yet provided them to our office, we must have them by March 6, 2020. Click here to see the latest news on the case. You will also need to fill out the Declaration. The Judge reiterated that Special Masters will be used to speed up the claim review process, and the Judge rejected all USPS objections to the use of Special Masters. Since no decision has been issued on any of the disputed claims, NO ONE IS ENTITLED TO A FAD. In addition, the Administrative Judge has also requested that our offices eliminate a small number of duplicate entries. If you wish, you can specifically request that USPS take into account your payments from OWCP when calculating any backpay that is owed to you. Please note that our firms (Thomas & Solomon, and Kator, Parks, Weiser & Harris) have stopped taking on new clients in this matter. We are hopeful though that in the near future we will hear from the Administrative Judge so that the process can move forward. Please continue to monitor this website over the upcoming weeks for additional important information. If you receive a Final Agency Decision related to the McConnell/NRP class complaint, please provide our office with a copy as soon as possible. Our offices also agreed to provide some additional information that should assist the process which was obtained from the Postal Service during the course of the litigation and should provide the EEOC Judge with much of the requested information. Free shipping for many products! The Postal Service is disrupting the process by issuing premature FADs. To the best of our knowledge, the EEOC has never created a website devoted to a single case. You may also be able to obtain relief for harm from harassment you experienced as a consequence of the NRP. In order to keep our internal records accurate, please continue to keep our office updated on any changes to your contact information or other significant life events, such as a diagnosis of a terminal illness or the filing of bankruptcy. We can send you out a retainer letter that must be signed and returned to our office. Although as discussed above the Judge did not think it was a good idea to opt-out of this case, she noted that people have the legal right to do so. In the past few days, we have received a very large number of calls and emails related to this case. As you may be aware, USPS disputed every claim submitted in this case. USPS provided a limited number of the missing pages to counsel by that date, but refused to produce all of the files that we sought. We are responding to each call and email in the order received. The next status conference is scheduled for October 31, 2022 at 11:00 am. At Thomas & Solomon LLP, you can have your rights protected and your voice heard by a firm with the resources to hold employers accountable. Please continue to monitor this website for updates on the case. As of July 15, 2019, we have filed a legal brief (Statement) and evidence on behalf of all Claimants who are represented by our law firms. Posted in Federal Worker Compensation, General, Postal Workers. We continue to work with the judge to move this case forward toward a final resolution. We will do everything in our power to reward your patience by fighting for a fair and reasonable determination of your individual claims for relief. Postal Service was found liable for creating and implementing a years-long, nation-wide program that discriminated against thousands of disabled USPS employees. The next status conference is set for January 24, 2020. Yesterday afternoon, the parties participated in a status conference with EEOC Judge Roberts-Draper. Our proposed Case Management Order calls for immediate processing of 50 initial claims, including opportunities for limited discovery. The claims, evidence, and legal briefs for all of our clients' relief claims have been submitted to the EEOC Administrative Judge. Our legal team has experience achieving successful class-wide settlements in complex cases, but we also have experience pushing forward with litigation if fair settlement cannot be reached with the other side. Today we had another video conference call with the Administrative Judge. Attorney website: www.nrpclassaction.com Attorney phone #s: 585 272 0540 or toll free 877 272 4066 The 30 day window to file a written claim (measured from the date a class member receives notice from the Postal Service) provides a short time period. If you are represented by our offices, you have received (or soon will receive) an automated telephone call from us, providing you with the special telephone number for you to call and hear the recording. We will promptly pursue this issue through the appropriate process. Or if you were told that no work would be available for you, you should use a Continuation sheet to describe how you learned that, and an approximate date. Until we know if our motion has been granted, you should proceed as though the Declaration should be returned to our office by March 25, 2019. As previously reported on June 27, 2018 (see below), the Postal Service prematurely issued thousands of Final Agency Decisions in this case, thereby undermining the ability of class members to provide a full presentation in support of their claims for individual relief. We fought this case all the way to a final decision, and the EEOC judge and appeals office found that the NRP was discriminatory. Pursuant to todays Order, 2,200+ claimant names will be presented to the Special Masters in approximately three months, representing the initial batch of claims for review and consideration by the Special Masters. On the one hand, the EEOC Judge is clearly interested in prompt forward action for this case, but on the other hand the EEOC has never handled a case with this many individual claims. At the end of todays status conference, the Judge noted that there will be subsequent conferences to continue to ensure that the EEOC has all of the information needed to evaluate claimant relief. Please send our office a copy of any letters that you receive from the Postal Service as soon as possible. We will be in touch in the coming weeks if we need anything additional from you. Please continue to check our website for updates. If you have questions related to filling out the Declaration form, please call us at 585-272-0540. Without your patience and persistence, the Postal Service would have won without a fight. Please continue to check this website for updates. If you have medical information related to the harm you experienced as a result of the NRP, you should submit that medical information now if possible. The USPS attorneys sought to use the USPS March 17, 2021 appeal as a way to stall the case further and challenge the Administrative Judges authority. The Administrative Judge ordered USPS to provide certain missing NRP Activity File pages to the attorneys by May 28, 2019. Other members of the class must proactively file claims to prove they are members of the class and will then also be entitled to relief. You can give our office a call at 585-272-0540 or email us at nrpclassaction@theemploymentattorneys.com. No. Thank you for all of your continued patience with this case, and we hope to have more progress to report to everyone soon. This means that if you have updated your contact information, including address, phone number, email address, and/or name, through the EEOC website (www.eeoc-nrpphase2.com) or by calling the third party number identified in the EEOCs recent communication, you must also contact our office as well to update the information. Before sending your completed forms to the Postal Service, please contact us, make a copy for your records, and then send our office a copy. The effect of the House of Lords' unanimous ruling was to uphold firmly the doctrine of corporate personality, as set out in the Companies Act 1862, so that creditors of an insolvent company could not sue the company's shareholders for payment of outstanding debts. We share your frustration with how long this is taking, and we share your anger with the Postal Service's continued efforts to delay justice in this case. The judge may wish for a live hearing to determine the proper award for your claim. For example, if a manager told you that you had no other option than to retire, you should write out on a Continuation sheet a brief description of who said it to you and an approximate date, to the best you can. On February 27, 2019, the EEOC Administrative Judge issued a Case Management Order. If you have not previously retained our firms but you wish to do so at this time, please call 585-272-0540 in order to request a retainer agreement for you to sign. The Class is represented by Thomas & Solomon LLP, and Kator, Parks, Weiser & Harris, PLLC. Previously, we urged all of our clients to complete and return Declaration forms to us no later than March 25, 2019. The EEOC Administrative Judge issued a new order regarding the processing of claims in this case. The EEOC Administrative Judge held a status conference on November 19, 2019. On the other hand, the Judge acknowledged the extraordinary difficulties associated with a case of this magnitude and complexity. There will be a Spanish translation of the recording also available at the same number. TOMY Trackmaster Thomas & Friends "DENNIS" 2009 WORKING Motorized Train. The Order states that the process to be used is that the Postal Service is to submit their legal brief and evidence by March 19, 2019, and then Claimants have 20 days to submit their legal brief and evidence. As the Judge noted in her decision, the value and strength of the lawsuit is that there are so many people who the Commission has found to have been harmed by the NRP.. The Declaration form contains information that the EEOC Judge has requested for each claimant. Our team is standing by! With this fast, favorable decision by EEOC-OFO, the course is now set to have the claims review process commence in the very near future. are not a guarantee of whether any recovery may be obtained in this case, or how much will be awarded. (If you have already completed that form and submitted it to us, there is no other action needed by you at this time.). We will post status updates on the claims process on this website. The EEOC has repeatedly stated that it is not necessary to provide medical support in order to obtain an award of compensatory damages. My Supervisors or co-workers called me lazy due to my restrictions. At the May 12, 2022 status conference, the EEOC Administrative Judge was once again joined by EEOC Administrative Judge McCauley and the data attorney from the EEOC. Please check this website for updates. On a related issue, a few claimants have asked if they can both request a FAD and still get the advantages of this case. Continued patience is therefore required. Please continue to monitor our website for more updates in the coming weeks. We recommend emailing FADs to us at NRPclassaction@theemploymentattorneys.com or faxing us at (585) 272-0574. (A copy of the Declaration form is available by clicking this link). Experience demonstrates that fair settlement in a case like this cannot be achieved without lengthy, complex negotiations lasting months or even years. If you are represented by our offices and have changed your contact information, including telephone number, mailing address, or email address, please make sure to promptly update such information with our offices. We are asking that everyone return the paperwork that we have mailed to you so that it arrives in our office by no later than March 25, 2019. As the attorneys who initially filed the charge that began this action back in 2007, we understand this has been a long and frustrating road, but please know that we will continue to fight for each of our claimants. Solomon Northup and Twelve Years a Slave: Analyzing . Thank you for your continued patience! Of note, Judge Roberts-Draper continued to express a strong desire to expedite the claims process in order to provide appropriate relief to claimants. You may email our office at nrpclassaction@theemploymentattorneys.com or call us at 585-272-0540. We currently have no information regarding the nature of the EEOCs website or the notice, so unfortunately cannot yet provide answers to questions you may have, but we will provide a detailed update as soon as we have additional information. EEOC rules and guidelines require all parties to be willing to discuss the possibility of settlement with the EEOC Judge. For most people, the answer is no. Most people previously filled out a claim for individual relief form that included a written designation of our law firms to represent them. A status conference has been scheduled by the Administrative Judge for November 19, 2019 at 2:00 pm EST. We notified the Judge about this, and argued that this is yet another reason to move this process toward a quick resolution. With a letter order on March 26, 2021, the EEOC Office of Federal Operations (EEOC-OFO) dismissed the USPS final action and appeal of the Administrative Judges orders regarding the use of Special Masters to assist with review of the claims. This has been a long and hard-fought battle against the Postal Service, but the end is in sight. A copy of the Declaration form is being sent by e-mail to those Class Members who have sent us an e-mail address, and a copy of the Declaration form is also available by clicking here. The Postal Service HAS NOT sent copies of these letters to your attorneys. Accordingly, it is a good idea to proceed cautiously. Our 30% fee will not be applied to any part of your recovery that you are required to pay back to the United States due to alleged overpayment to you by OWCP or OPM or Social Security. I was told that I would be sent to work for Walmart; or If the EEOC orders the Postal Service to pay attorney fees related to your claim, those fees would come directly to us and not relate in any way to the 30% contingency fee payment.Of course, as the case proceeds, we are unable to predict what the final outcome will be. Today we had a very productive two hour video call with EEOC Administrative Judge Roberts-Draper regarding a process to move this case forward. RULING REGARDING NRP ACTIVITY FILES It is undisputed that NRP Activity files were produced to Phase I Class Counsel during discovery. We deeply appreciate your extraordinary patience as this lengthy process moves forward. In the past few weeks, we received a very large number of calls and emails related to this case. Many of you have asked about the next steps in the EEOC process. Please also send us a copy of the forms as the Postal Service has NOT sent copies to your attorneys. The legal term for this situation is constructive discharge. Section 7 of the Declaration form will help you figure out if your situation is covered by constructive discharge. Here are three suggestions in connection with constructive discharge claims.First, you should read over all of the statements in Section 7 of the Declaration form, to see which statements apply to you.

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