9/11 deal for workers 'not enough': judge
19 March 2010 | 
Author: Professor |
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CBC News 19 March, 2010
A federal judge has rejected a mutimillion-dollar deal to compensate thousands of emergency workers who had claimed that cleaning up the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center had made them sick.
U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein said the agreement, valued at more than $650 million, did not include enough money for the 10,000 police officers, firefighters and other labourers in New York.
"In my judgment, this settlement is not enough," Hellerstein said
The judge also said he was concerned that too much of the deal was going toward legal fees — a third of the amount was expected to go to the workers' lawyers.
He also expressed concerns that some workers might be pressured to sign the agreement without knowing what compensation they would receive. Under terms of the deal, workers were given just 90 days to decide whether they wanted to participate.
"I will not preside over a settlement that is based on fear or ignorance," he said.
Last week, a tentative deal was reached between lawyers for the City of New York and thousands of emergency workers. Many have complained about respiratory problems like asthma and other more serious health-related diseases, including cancer, in the years following the attacks.
Thousands of police officers, firefighters and construction workers had filed lawsuits against the city, claiming they had been sent to the site without proper protective equipment.
It wasn't immediately clear whether the judge's actions, which he announced from the bench, would kill the settlement entirely.
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