The Virginian-Pilot reports that a settlement has been reached in an $18 million Employee Polygraph Protection Act lawsuit. Excerpt:
NORFOLK — A lawsuit filed by a former Smithfield Packing Co. saleswoman against the meatpacker has been settled on the eve of trial this week.
The terms were not disclosed.
The former employee, Julie M. Bannister, claimed in the $18 million suit that the company tried to force her to take a lie-detector test after she filed a sexual-harassment complaint. She also claimed she was defamed by a supervisor.
Papers filed in U.S. District Court June 24 say that the case was settled, but no details were provided. The trial was set to open this week.
This case was the subject of a 10 October 2002 Virginian-Pilot article titled, “Ex-employee sues Smithfield over polygraph.”