WILLIAMSPORT -- A federal judge has certified as a class action lawsuit that accuses the Shop-Vac Corp. of violating the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN).
Approximately 425 workers were phased out when the family-owned Shop-Vac ceased operations without advance notice on Sept. 15, 2000.
Three months later GreatStar, a subsidiary of Hangzhous GreatStar Industrial Co., headquartered in Hangzhous, China, purchased Shop-Vac’s assets.
Candice Gair who filed the suit then amended her complaint to include GreatStar.
GreatStar maintains it is not a legal successor to Shop-Vac, the manufacturer of wet/dry residential, commercial and industrial vacuum cleaners.
By agreement of the parties, Shop-Vac in March was dismissed from the case because it was in the process of dissolving and had no assets remaining that could provide recoverable value.
Before being removed, Shop-Vac fought the suit contending it was not required to give 60 days’ notice because it was a “faltering company.”
The suit claims employees were terminated without notice, severance pay or health care coverage in violation of the WARN Act, which requires a 60-day notice.
GreatStar rehired 206 Shop-Vac employees, according to a court document, but required them to sign a contract that mandated arbitration for all disputes between them and the company.
It was GreatStar’s position that Gair could not represent those who signed the arbitration agreement because she was not rehired.
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