NINE former firefighters are suing the CNMI government in Superior Court to enforce a $125,000 federal settlement judgment related to a Covid-19 premium pay dispute.
Last year, former Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services employees Paul T. Acebedo, Jose K. Angui, Allen T. Calvo, Cain C. Castro, Argernon A. Flores, Derek Gersonde, Shawn DLR Kaipat, Philip M. Kalen, and Adam J. Safer filed a federal lawsuit against then-Finance Secretary David Atalig in his individual capacity, seeking $100,000 in damages for alleged civil rights violations.
The case was later settled for $125,000. Under the agreement, Atalig assigned his claims against the Commonwealth to the plaintiffs, including claims for indemnity and alleged wrongful denial of attorney fees.
According to the settlement, Atalig submitted a copy of the federal complaint to Attorney General Edward Manibusan and requested legal representation from the Office of the Attorney General. The AG denied the request, requiring Atalig to retain private counsel at his own expense.
Dispute over premium pay
In December 2021, the CNMI government announced $5,000 in premium pay for frontline workers who had worked at least 40 hours mitigating the Covid-19 pandemic. Eligible employees providing prevention, response, preparedness, and recovery services were to receive the full amount.
The plaintiffs said they met the criteria and submitted applications to the Department of Finance but were awarded only $1,000 each. The lawsuit alleges that Atalig “arbitrarily decided that resigned, terminated, and inactive frontline employees would receive premium pay in the amount of $1,000 only.”
“Plaintiffs, who were no longer employed by the Commonwealth government at the time premium pay was issued, were therefore paid less than full premium pay, notwithstanding the fact that they had already performed the amount of direct pandemic mitigation work required to qualify,” the complaint stated.
Previous terminations
The former firefighters had been terminated for refusing the Covid-19 vaccine. They previously filed a separate lawsuit in Superior Court seeking reinstatement, but the court upheld the Civil Service Commission’s decision to terminate them.
Represented by attorney Joseph Horey, the plaintiffs named Atalig as the defendant over his decision to approve the reduced compensation. Their new lawsuit, filed this month, asks the Superior Court to enforce payment of the $125,000 federal judgment along with additional restitution.
