A federal jury has awarded $415,000 to two former northeast Georgia poultry plant employees who were fired for complaining about fraud, hiring discrimination and other abuses by supervisors. The jury found that ConAgra Poultry Co. in Clarke County - later bought by Pilgrim's Pride Corp. - fired the women in September 2003 after they blew the whistle on an assistant to the human resources manager who made a fake Social Security card for an illegal immigrant who worked a side job for the plant's general manager.
The panel also found that the manager's assistant authorized falsified insurance coverage so another employee could claim his sister and nephew - also illegal immigrants - as dependents on his health plan. In a decision Tuesday, the jury awarded Scarlet Reyna and Maria Ortega a combined $415,000 for lost wages and benefits, as well as emotional pain and mental anguish.
The panel also found that the manager's assistant authorized falsified insurance coverage so another employee could claim his sister and nephew - also illegal immigrants - as dependents on his health plan. In a decision Tuesday, the jury awarded Scarlet Reyna and Maria Ortega a combined $415,000 for lost wages and benefits, as well as emotional pain and mental anguish.
