BEAUFORT, S.C. (AP) - A South Carolina county has agreed to settle a lawsuit filed on behalf of about 40 former employees after it voted to cut health benefits for retirees in 2015.
Beaufort County will pay $695,000 out of its general fund to former workers if the settlement is approved by the council, The Island Packet reported.
The county council voted in 2003 to allow county employees with at least 10 years of service to continue their health and dental benefits into retirement, the newspaper reported. The policy also applied to Bluffton Township Fire District workers with at least 25 years of service.
In 2015, the county voted to eliminate the program to cut costs. Several employees filed a breach of contract lawsuit shortly after coverage officially ended in 2016, the newspaper reported.
The county still won’t provide health and dental benefits to retirees, spokesperson Liz Farrell told the Packet. Danny Henderson, an attorney representing the employees, told the paper that his law firm was working with county officials and attorneys on a resolution.
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