Lawsuit against DHS contractor grows to $17 million

The lawsuit against private security firm Eagle Technologies Inc. has recently ballooned to more than $17 million.

The firm was sued in March 2010 by a dozen current and former employees who provided armed security at the yet to be opened DHS National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center at Fort Detrick in Frederick, Maryland.

The employees accused Eagle Technologies, which was recently purchased by Protection Strategies Inc., of withholding overtime pay, failing to reimburse employees for work-related expenses, and other labor violations.

An investigation by the Department of Labor found that the firm had committed sixty-one labor violations.

The employees originally sued for $5 million, but last month amended the lawsuit to request more money after two of the plaintiffs claimed that the company had illegally retaliated against them for participating in the lawsuit.

One plaintiff, Janet Fish, said that after becoming involved in the lawsuit, she had been suspended, demoted, and denied bonuses. Furthermore, she had been threatened by the firm until she submitted her resignation. Fish is now seeking an additional $6 million in compensatory and punitive damages and has requested that the firm pay out the wages and overtime that they withheld, as well as her court fees and attorney’s fees.

“The damages are growing because discovery is disclosing more and more issues,” she said.

In addition, William Shank, the lead plaintiff, said that as a result of his participation in the Department of Labor investigation, a letter of reprimand was publicly posted in lobby of the biodefense research center and that he was eventually banned from the building. In response to these actions, he is now seeking an additional $1 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages.

According to Paul DeCamp, the lawyer representing the plaintiffs against Eagle Technologies, the case is still in its discovery phase and the trial is moving ahead as schedule with no future court appearances currently planned. Under-oath pretrial witness examinations are expected to begin early next month.

In addition to the current lawsuit, Eagle Technologies is also facing a bankruptcy case and a Department of Labor investigation.

After being contacted by the plaintiffs of the first lawsuit, Department of Labor officials began auditing Eagle Technologies’ new owner Protection Strategies Inc. to find that it had twenty-nine Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act violations totaling $2,121.58 in unpaid wages as well as thirty-two Service Contract Act violations amounting to $2,719.68 in back wages.

Since 2000, Eagle Technologies has been investigated seven times by the Department of Labor.