Kroger DC Workers File Hidden Surveillance Video Suit

CINCINNATI - Nearly 140 employees of a Kroger distribution center in Louisville, Ken. have reportedly filed a lawsuit against the grocery chain here and Zenith Logistics, alleging that the companies used hidden video surveillance in the men's restroom without the workers' knowledge.

The lawsuit, which was filed in Jefferson Circuit Court and includes 138 current or former employees from Kentucky and Indiana, says the workers discovered they were being monitored on Nov. 11, 2006, reported the Louisville Courier-Journal.

The suit, which names the distribution center's manager, Oscar Fussenegger, as a defendant, does not specify why there was video surveillance in the restroom, or what proof the plaintiffs have that the companies placed it there.

The plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial and compensatory and punitive damages for injuries "as a result of the fact that their most private activities in the restroom have been monitored," according to the suit.

Kroger spokesman Tim McGurk was quoted as saying the lawsuit is "without merit."

In April, about 700 workers walked off the job at the distribution center for several days during a dispute with the companies that operate the center for Kroger.

The members of Teamsters Local 89 ratified agreements with Transervice Logistics, which runs the trucking operations at the site, and with Zenith Logistics. The employees used to work directly for Kroger, but the supermarket chain transferred operations to the two companies earlier this year.
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