Frequently Asked Questions about Western Star Class Action

In the Certification Order the class is defined as follows:

All persons employed by the Defendant Freightliner Ltd. in British Columbia under an oral or written contract of employment of indefinite duration who received notice of termination of their employment at any time on or after December 3, 2001 until September 30, 2002.

This class does not include employees:

1. who executed a full and final release in favour of the Defendant;
2. who were dismissed for just cause;
3. who were unionized employees in a bargaining until; and
4. who resigned prior to September 30, 2002.

BC Residents: If you are a resident of British Columbia, you will automatically be a member of the class by falling within the definition outlined above. You do not have to do anything to be part of the class. If you do not want to be part of the class, you will have the opportunity to “opt out” at a later date, after certification of the claim as a class action.

Non-BC Residents: If you fall into the above definition, but are not a resident of British Columbia, you will have had the opportunity to “opt in” to one or both of the classes, in a manner that will be specified later in the proceedings.

In the class action, the plaintiff seeks to recover judgement for all of the claims described in the Statement of Claim. Some of the claims made are:
a claim for a declaration that the notice that Freightliner gave to its non-unionized employees in December, 2001 was not effective working notice of termination of employment, and ought not to be taken into account to diminish its severance obligation to employees on cessation of worka claim for a declaration that Freightliner breached its employment contract with its non-unionized employees when it unilaterally stopped paying overtime

• a claim for a declaration that Freightliner breached its employment contract with its non-unionized employees when it unilaterally instituted a 5% salary rollback
• a claim for a declaration that Freightliner breached its employment contract with its non-unionized employees when it unilaterally stopped paying bonuses
• a claim that Freightliner has not paid or offered adequate severance because the amounts paid or offered do not reflect the full value of all salary and benefits the workers would have received during an appropriate notice period (for example, failure to pay any severance amount to reflect lost pension contributions during the notice period)

This is a decision that you must make yourself. Only you can decide what is right for you, in your particular circumstances.

You should, however, be aware that if you do accept the severance package, you might not be able to participate in the class action. This depends on whether, by accepting the package offered by Freightliner, you will be seen as having settled all of your possible claims. If you sign a Release, depending on the language of the document, you may release all of your claims against Freightliner. Even if you sign a release, depending on the circumstances, you might still be able to participate in the Class Action.

Your should consider whether the severance offer made to you:

• is based on an appropriate notice period, given the length of your service, your age, the availability to suitable alternative employment, and other relevant circumstances
• includes compensation for for unpaid overtime, bonuses, and the 5% salary rollback amounts
• is based on all money and benefits you would have received during the notice period
• requires you to sign a Release that would preclude you from participaring in any award to the pension class

At the very least, we recommend that you do not sign any Release or any document which might amount to an agreement that your claims in the Class Action are barred, without obtaining legal advice.

If you refuse to sign a release, it has now been confimed that Freightliner will pay you all severance amounts they have said they will pay in notices of termination, regardless of whether you refuse to sign a Release.

By law, the company is not allowed to withhold the minimum amounts set out in the Employment Standards Act. These amounts vary with your length of service with the company, and can range anywhere from one week to eight weeks wages.

If you sign a Release you will be precluded from advancing the claims that are specified in the release against Freightliner. Thus, the effect of the Release depends on the specific language.

No, not at this point. If we are successful in the action, with the court’s approval, a portion of the award that we obtain for each of the members will go towards our legal fees and disbursements. If we are unsuccessful in the action, there will be no costs.

It all depends under what circumstances you accept the transfer. If you sign a release, you may be precluded from taking part in some or all of the class action. If you do not sign a release, it is likely that you will be able to take part in the class action. If you are working in a position that is comparable to the one you enjoyed with Freightliner before you moved, it is unlikely that you will recover any compensation for severance of working notice through the class action. You could possibly still recover monies for your pension loss, overtime payments, bonus claim and 5% salary rollback, depending on your individual circumstances.

Yes, you can still take part in the class action if you move away from British Columbia.

We will provide a form of questionnaire to be completed by the class members in due course. This questionnaire will describe the documents we will need. In the meantime you should organize and preserve documents relevant to your work history and your pension.

You will have an opportunity to opt out of the class action once the court has certified the proceedings and approved the classes. After certification, we will send all class members a form to be completed by anyone wishing to opt out.

The answer to this question depends on circumstances which cannot be determined with certainty at this stage. Depending on the nature and extent of discussions between TevlinGleadle, class counsel, and counsel for the defendants, early resolution of some or all of the issues might be achieved, even in the next few months. Early steps are being taken in the action, to exchange formal positions (Statement of Claim, Statements of Defence), and to seek an order certifying the proceeding as a Class Action. The certification application is required by the Class Proceedings Act to occur within 90 days of the time when the defendants are supposed to have filed their Statements of Defence.

Worst Case Scenario: If all issues are fully disputed, and no agreements can be concluded with the defendants, and if all appeals are taken, final resolution of all claims might not occur for up to several years. However, we are committing all our resources now, seeking a fair resolution to all issues at the earliest possible date.