BEAUMONT, Texas — A Golden Pass LNG contractor is being hit with a lawsuit after laying off more than 4,400 workers.
In the suit, Zachry Holdings is being accused of violating federal law by not notifying workers within 60 days that they would be off the job.
Specifically the company is being accused of violating the Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification Act. The WARN Act requires the advance notice of layoffs before a plant closing or mass layoff.
A former Zachry employee wants her case against the company to become a class action lawsuit according to court documents.
She is seeking unpaid wages and benefits for all employees that were impacted by the sudden job loss.
Zachry says it believes it was in compliance with the WARN act according to a statement sent to 12News on Wednesday morning.
The company, in the statement, blamed the layoffs on Golden Pass LNG saying they were a "direct consequence of the failure of Golden Pass and its shareholders to act in good faith or follow through on their commitments."
The suit was was filed on Monday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston, which is where Zachary's current Chapter 11 Bankruptcy case is playing out.
The company previously told 12News that a number of issues, including the pandemic, caused a delay in construction at the site.
Meanwhile, Golden Pass LNG has an emergency motion to kick Zachry Holdings off of the initial contract to complete the project at the Sabine Pass location.
The company says the measure is needed so that work can continue for the project.
Read the full statement from Zachry...
“The Company is aware of its obligations under the WARN Act and believes it was in compliance with those requirements. As we have noted previously, the recent layoffs are the direct consequence of the failure of Golden Pass and its shareholders to act in good faith or follow through on their commitments. Their actions forced Zachry Holdings Inc. and certain of its subsidiaries to file for Chapter 11 in order to protect its business, which is otherwise very strong. In addition, they have left a trail of others harmed in their wake, including other local vendors and suppliers left unpaid for work on the GPX project and the thousands of employees who lost their jobs.”
This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.