Blue Cross sued by former employees
BOSTON — Approximately 600 former employees are suing Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, maintaining they should have received severance and transition pay. They had worked at nine health centers which Blue Cross sold to MedPartners Inc. in 1997 for about $75 million. All of those suing were given jobs at MedPartners. But in their suit filed in U.S. District Court, they said they should have received severance pay because they left Blue Cross against their will. They also say MedPartners did not give them as much in benefits as Blue Cross had. MedPartners now is trying to sell all the health centers it bought from Blue Cross, and has let some employees go, including some who had worked for Blue Cross.
Firm pleads guilty to bribing Panamanian officials
BOSTON — Saybolt Inc., a Boston-based petroleum inspection firm, pleaded guilty recently to charges of bribing Panamanian government officials. Saybolt was convicted of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and Chief U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young ordered the firm to pay $1.5 million in fines. The fines are in addition to $3.4 million imposed Jan. 7 on Saybolt for falsifying environmental test results. With respect to the most recent plea, prosecutors had alleged Saybolt arranged to pay $50,000 to Panamanian government officials in 1995 to smooth the way for a laboratory lease for a site next to the Panama canal.
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Polaroid loses $75.5 million in fourth quarter
CAMBRIDGE — Polaroid Corp. reported it lost $75.5 million during the fourth quarter due to cutbacks in orders from U.S. retailers and continuing weakness in overseas markets. The company’s loss translated to $1.72 cents per diluted share, and compared with a loss of $202.8 million, or $4.51 per share, in the fourth quarter of 1997. Restructuring charges contributed to Polaroid’s losses the past two years. In addition, the company has cut back on manufacturing for distribution in the United States as stores reduce their inventory of Polaroids. Domestic sales fell about 6 percent in the fourth quarter. In all, sales for the fourth quarter fell to $541.8 million from $607.6 million a year earlier. Gary DiCamillo, the company’s chairman and chief executive officer, said fourth quarter results met expectations.
Nurse’s suit asks review of hospital staffing levels
DEDHAM — A nurse has sued Massachusetts General Hospital, saying she was fired for saying patients were not safe because of a lack of nurses. The suit is unusual in that it asks to have the staffing levels of nurses at the hospital reviewed. Cathleen Kyle, who cared for critically ill patients at the hospital for 10 years, filed the suit in Norfolk Superior Court, according to her lawyer, Chester Darling. Jeanette Ives Erickson, the hospital’s vice president for patient care services, said Kyle wasn’t fired but resigned because her request to change from full-time status to a per- diem basis was not approved. Kyle’s lawyers said she originally got approval to change her schedule of 36 hours a week to per diem so she could continue her education. He said the hospital’s separation report states the hospital “withdrew the per-diem offer” when “subsequent inappropriate behavior that had been previously addressed continued to occur.”
City to appoint fishing officer
NEW BEDFORD – The city’s Economic Development Council has agreed to create a full time position of Development Officer for Fishing Related Business, recognizing the historical significance of the industry to the city, the council said. Mayor Fred Kalisz first proposed the idea, according to the council, which created it to give new direction to dealing with industries involving the industry. The council said it hopes to fill the position by the end of February.
Western Mass. Electric Co. sells its power plants
WEST SPRINGFIELD — Western Massachusetts Electric Company has agreed to sell off its power plants, the company announced. Consolidated Edison Energy, Inc. of N.Y. agreed to pay $47 million to WMECO for an oil- and gas-fired plant in West Springfield and five hydroelectric plants serving New England. Altogether, the plants generate 290 megawatts of capacity. WMECO will continue to deliver electricity to its customers through its transmission and distribution network of poles and wires.
Seafood group doubling the size of its plant
NEW BEDFORD – Flynn Seafood Group announced that its doubling the size of its plant and offices to nearly 50,000 square feet. Flynn Seafood Group includes Flynn Fisheries, Harbor Fish Co., and Charlesville Salt Fisch Co. The new facility, which is expected to be completed in April, will house all three companies and the Flynn group’s corporate offices. The $3.5 million project is funded by the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency, in conjunction with BankBoston.
Inso buys Paris software company
BOSTON – Inso Corp., which also has an office in Providence, has acquired AIS Software S.A. from Berger Levrault S.A., a leading French publisher, for some $3 million in cash. AIS Software, based in Paris, is the developer of Balise, a premier SGML and XML transformation tool and scripting language, as well as Dual Prism, a Web-based XML and SGML publishing system.
