Shopko Employees Seek Severance Payments
Monday, June 10th, 2019 -- 9:48 AM
(Green Bay Press-Gazette) -Almost 700 current and former Shopko employees have signed a letter seeking severance payments now that the retailer's wind-down plan has been approved by a federal bankruptcy judge.The plan was approved Friday by U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Saladino after Ashwaubenon-based retailer and McKesson Corp., a San Francisco-based drug company, reached an agreement that preserves McKesson's ability to pursue legal claims against Shopko executives, directors and outside consultants. McKesson is seeking to recoup $55 million it claims it is owed for drugs and other products provided to Shopko. The issue kept Saladino from approving the plan during a hearing in May. Saldino's sign off on the plan clears the way for the company to finish its store liquidation sales and shut down its remaining stores on June 23.
Meanwhile, about 700 current and former employees are seeking severance payments from Sun Capital Partners, the private equity firm that bought Shopko for $1 billion in 2005. They claim employees were promised severance pay in the weeks after Shopko filed for bankruptcy protection in January, but the payments were removed from the budget during bankruptcy proceedings. The employees, supported by the worker advocacy group United for Respect, are asking Sun Capital establish a support fund for the nearly 14,000 employees who lost jobs because of the bankruptcy.
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