11 Sep 2002

Marshalls company sues US army over alleged discrimination

4:55 pm on 11 September 2002

A Marshall Islands company is suing the US Army for discrimination against its Marshallese workers.

Jerry Kramer, the owner of Pacific International Incorporated, says the US Army and Army Corp of Engineers on Kwajalein Atoll had refused to accomodate his Marshallese employees.

He says this forced him to hire Americans and it interfered in his company's ability to fulfill a building contract on the missile-army base.

Mr Kramer says he's been seeking compensation since 1997 but the army has been using dirty tactics to prevent a settlement and he wants his day in court.

"We were threatened, cajoled. They offered a system for an alternate dispute resolution and they wrote the terms and conditions of the facilitations and then they gave us excuses as to why they couldn't sign this for 4 years. It could get to a position where they accomplish what we feel they're trying to do and that is to totally discourage us financially, so that we'll quit."

Jack Kramer says that the court hearing will take place on October the 22nd in the Marshall Islands high court.