Court Of Appeals Dismisses Class Action Claim by Injured War-Zone Workers
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has rejected an appeal from a group of Iraq war-zone workers, some of whom lost limbs or suffered traumatic brain injury or exhibited symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, saying that the workers may only seek damages under the administrative remedies offered by the Longshore Act and the Defense Base Act. The workers, many of whom were employed by Halliburton, had argued that the limitations of those acts did not apply because the damages sought were for “post-injury” actions.
The lawsuit filed against the contractors painted a picture of continual misrepresentation by employers of workers in war-zone Iraq, including base exchange employees. The plaintiffs alleged that contractors, including KBR Inc., intentionally delayed, cut off or refused to provide promised medical care or coverage, ignored U.S. Department of Labor orders to pay benefits, lied to workers about the payment of benefits, tried to intimidate employees from filing workers’ compensation claims and even terminated workers who were injured.
The lawsuit, filed by 31 injured workers, sought to certify a class of up to 10,000 injured persons. The court concluded that the Defense Base Act provided the exclusive remedy for the workers.
The Defense Base Act, enacted in 1941, extends the coverage of the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, providing benefits for persons employed as civilians on U.S. defense bases overseas.
The court found that the plaintiffs had not made any effort to pursue the administrative remedies set forth in the Longshore and Defense Base Acts. Calling the provisions of those acts a “legislated compromise,” the panel held that the text of those laws provides the exclusive remedy for workers covered by their provisions.
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