Clerk of US District Court <telecom@eecs.nwu.edu> (01/05/90)
This is a legal notice, and may affect your rights. Please read it
carefully and ask your attorney for advice if you have questions about
this notice.
In the United States District Court For the Northern District of Illinois,
Eastern Division
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Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, *
Communications Workers of America, et al *
Plaintiffs * Consolidated 78 C 3951
* Dockets: 82 C 1542
*
-- vrs -- *
* Hon. James H. Alesia
* Special Master:
AT&T Technologies, Inc., et al * Frank J. McGarr
Defendants *
*
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N O T I C E
=====================
If you took a maternity leave from Western Electric Company between
July 2, 1965 and August 7, 1977, and were employed by Western Electric
on or after March 23, 1971, you have a right to receive money,
employment at AT&T, seniority and other benefits.
The Basis of the Lawsuit:
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), a United States
government agency, the Communications Workers of America (CWA), and
several Western Electric employees as individuals are plaintiffs in a
lawsuit claiming that Western Electric's maternity leave policies
discriminated against female employees. The Court has ruled that
certain policies were discriminatory against women by:
o Forcing pregnant women to stop working at a specified time
regardless of whether they were still able to work.
o Failing to reinstate or delaying the return to work of women
on maternity leave.
o Giving women on maternity leave only 30 days of seniority.
Who May File a Claim:
You may file a claim if you took one or more maternity leaves between
July 2, 1965 and August 7, 1977, and if you were employed by Western
Electric on or after March 23, 1971. If you were on leave or layoff
status as of March 23, 1971, you may also file a claim.
If you took a maternity leave from facilities in Watertown or
Southboro, Massachusetts; Burlington or Winston-Salem, North Carolina;
the State of New Jersey or the State of Arizona, you are NOT entitled
to file a claim. The terms of your union contract, and/or state and
municipal laws in the aforementioned places governed labor practices
at your facility. If you were employed at any other facility of the
Western Electric Company in the United States, then you ARE entitled
to file a claim.
How to Present Your Claim:
To present your claim, you must fill out a Claim Form. Claim Forms
have been mailed, but the passage of time has caused the records of
the Plaintiffs and Defendants to become out of date and inaccurate. If
you believe you are entitled to file a claim, and have not received a
Claim Form in the mail, you may request one by one of the two methods
listed below. A Claim Form and instructions will be sent to you by
return mail.
Attornies for the Plaintiff Will Assist You:
If you have any questions or want legal counsel before submitting the
Claim Form, you may telephone toll-free to attornies representing the
female employees in this case. The attornies are:
Julie Bowman
Michael Erp
Arthur Benson
Their telephone number is 1-800-628-2289. Or, you may consult your own
attorney for advice. Show this notice to your attorney and request
an explanation and assistance.
If you prefer, you may WRITE and request a copy of the Claim Form and
Instructions, by writing to:
H. Stuart Cunningham
Clerk of the United States District Court
ATTN: Western Electric Claims
Post Office Box 909703
Chicago, IL 60690
<< Include your Social Security Number in your correspondence >>
Timely Notice Required:
The Request for Claim Form and Instructions must be mailed promptly.
The deadline for submitting your claim is March 22, 1990. The Court
will not consider claims submitted after that date. The statements
made in your claim will be verified against the employment records of
the Defendant, and you may be asked to prove the statements you make
in your claim.
The only persons authorized to discuss your claim are the attornies
noted above or the Clerk of the United States District Court.
Correspond only with the persons named above. Do not telephone the
Court. Do not telephone, write, or otherwise contact the Western
Electric Company/AT&T Technologies, Inc.
/signed/
H. Stuart Cunningham
Clerk of the United States District Court
Chicago, Illinois