Let the games begin! Our good friends at BP have decided that its time to turn the screws on the “small people” they claim to care so much about.
This report by WDSU in New Orleans documents hundreds of fishermen who have not received their monthly check from BP. The monthly check that BP agreed to pay them in compensation for destroying their livelihood. In fact, BP didn’t just “agree” to it, it is a legal obligation hashed out between BP’s lawyers and lawyers representing 500 fishermen.
Apparently, according to WDSU, BP has decided to change the process by which they are reimbursing Gulf Coast fishermen. Of course BP refused to share any information with the fishermen’s attorneys, only stating that employees were not at liberty to discuss the matter, but BP would eventually contact them to let them know when the payments would resume.
Cue the Exxon Valdez. BP has established itself as a discreditable company with a possibly criminal history. They have created a pattern of misinformation, motivated only by lawsuits. Who in their right mind would have expected BP to hold up its end of the bargain?
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And who will be paying the price? You guessed it – the Gulf Coast fishermen who will have to stand by as the multi-billion dollar BP sicks its lawyers on the U.S. court system. So while rich lawyers from each side battle it out, the families whose economic prosperity has been destroyed by BP will suffer.
How long could your family go without a paycheck? I know mine would have quite a hard time making it even one week. And how long do you think BP’s lawyers can tie up an average fisherman’s money? Well if you make over $14 billion in profits, I would think you could jerk a guy along for quite some time.
This sort of corporate bullying is an outrage. Where are the politicians? The representatives of the people? Who will be there to help these families in need?
We need to keep giving to the Gulf Coast charities that are helping these families. At least we know that the charitable organizations operating in the Gulf Coast are there for the right reasons. And I seriously doubt that even one of these charitable organizations would just change the system and leave people high and dry. We need to take care of our own right now. I have no doubt that BP will pay something, but that is of little consequence to the men, women, and children who are left suffering while the really big money fights in the courts.
Hundreds Of Fishermen Missing Checks From BP – New Orleans News Story – WDSU New Orleans.
[...] Hundreds Of Fishermen Missing Checks From BP – WDSU News New Orleans [...]