EF summer 08.indd - National Association of Professional Allstate ...
EF summer 08.indd - National Association of Professional Allstate ...
EF summer 08.indd - National Association of Professional Allstate ...
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
income. I was also incensed that the<br />
meeting that I drove two hours and fifteen<br />
minutes one-way to attend lasted a<br />
total <strong>of</strong> 15 minutes! There was no Q&A.<br />
I would have expected much more from<br />
a meeting <strong>of</strong> this magnitude. In the end,<br />
15 minutes was all our careers were worth<br />
to <strong>Allstate</strong>. This deeply disturbed me.<br />
After the meeting, I stopped in the ladies<br />
room where I ran into a newer agent<br />
who asked “What did you think <strong>of</strong> that”<br />
I replied by saying “I can tell you right<br />
now there will be a class action lawsuit.”<br />
Little did I know that I would be the one<br />
spearheading it.<br />
I remember the long drive home that<br />
day – I was in a state <strong>of</strong> shock and disbelief.<br />
When the company announced that it<br />
was having the meeting, I assumed that it<br />
would be to convert us to the EA contract.<br />
<strong>EF</strong>: Were there other reasons<br />
Kafka: Yes. There were a number <strong>of</strong><br />
confidential side deals being worked out.<br />
Certain agents were given ‘Top-up bonuses’<br />
for which they had to sign confidentiality<br />
agreements. These agreements<br />
were for Agency Manager positions and<br />
Business Development Agents. I was<br />
stunned that I wasn’t <strong>of</strong>fered one. Adding<br />
insult to injury, I found out that a<br />
one-time <strong>National</strong> Champion awardwinner<br />
was <strong>of</strong>fered such a deal. I could<br />
see that it was all about favoritism and<br />
discrimination, not qualifications. I felt<br />
as if I was being demoted from an entrepreneur<br />
to an order processor and then<br />
forced to report to one <strong>of</strong> my former colleagues<br />
– this loss <strong>of</strong> prestige weighed<br />
heavily on my decision to leave.<br />
<strong>EF</strong>: How were you treated in the months<br />
leading up to your departure<br />
Kafka: At first management shunned<br />
me because I wasn’t embracing the new<br />
model and because I became vocal. Then<br />
it seemed that they were pushing me out<br />
the door.<br />
<strong>EF</strong>: How would you describe the mood <strong>of</strong><br />
agents in Canada today<br />
Kafka: Solemn is how I would describe<br />
it. Many <strong>of</strong> them [the agents] still don’t<br />
get it. They don’t realize that after the<br />
24 months working notice, which will<br />
end 8/31/2009, <strong>Allstate</strong> won’t owe them<br />
NEWS<br />
May 21, 2008 (Hamilton, Ontario)<br />
Hamilton, Ontario<br />
RELEASE<br />
Class Action Lawsuit Commenced against <strong>Allstate</strong><br />
with respect to Constructive Dismissal <strong>of</strong> All<br />
Agents Across Canada<br />
A Statement <strong>of</strong> Claim was issued in the Ontario Superior Court <strong>of</strong> Justice in<br />
Toronto on May 20, 2008 claiming damages for breach <strong>of</strong> contract and breach <strong>of</strong><br />
the Employment Standards Act, S.O. 2000, c.41 on behalf <strong>of</strong> all individuals in<br />
Canada who were employed by <strong>Allstate</strong> as agents as <strong>of</strong> July 24, 2007.<br />
The Statement <strong>of</strong> Claim seeks damages <strong>of</strong> more than $60,000,000.00.<br />
The plaintiffs, Esther Kafka, Ketal (Ken) Patel and Mark Cassells, have brought<br />
the action under the Class Proceedings Act, 1992.<br />
The Statement <strong>of</strong> Claim alleges that on July 24, 2007, <strong>Allstate</strong> unilaterally announced<br />
substantive material changes to the employment contract terms with all<br />
<strong>of</strong> its sales agents, numbering approximately 450, across Canada.<br />
The Statement <strong>of</strong> Claim alleges that all agents were employed under the same<br />
or substantially the same terms and conditions and that the changes unilaterally<br />
announced were to be implemented September 1, 2007.<br />
The Statement <strong>of</strong> Claim furthermore alleges that the changes introduced by<br />
<strong>Allstate</strong> strip agents <strong>of</strong> their renewal books <strong>of</strong> business and closes 256 agent locations<br />
throughout Canada consolidating those locations.<br />
The Statement <strong>of</strong> Claim furthermore alleges that the compensation system for<br />
<strong>Allstate</strong> agents changed effective September 1, 2007.<br />
The claim is being pursued by Scarfone Hawkins LLP <strong>of</strong> Hamilton, a law firm<br />
with significant experience in handling class action claims on behalf <strong>of</strong> plaintiffs.<br />
The Statement <strong>of</strong> Claim contains allegations which have yet to be proven in Court.<br />
Counsel for the plaintiffs, David Thompson and Matthew Moloci say that the<br />
proposed class proceeding represents not only the preferable procedure for dealing<br />
with this dispute, but the only available procedure presenting an opportunity<br />
for redress for class members.<br />
For more information contact David Thompson at Scarfone Hawkins LLP, 905-<br />
523-1333 or thompson@shlaw.ca.<br />
Summer 2008 Exclusivefocus — 21
Change language