Has the WTS ever sued a "brother" or any baptised Witness?

by Shawn10538 25 Replies latest jw friends

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  Shawn10538

  Hopefully someone has some information on this. I think it is an important question because from recent observation on another JW website, it has come up that some JW Bethelites are suing the WTS in Workers Comp cases after getting injured while at Bethel. This is big news to me since I have a similar case outstanding right now. Witnesses are quick to label anyone suing the society as rebelious and disloyal. But I see no contradiction in any Witness in good standing suing so they can be properly taken care of. Injuries impact a person's ability to fuinction not just while at Bethel, but for the rest of their lives. In Work Comp cases it is referred to as percentage of permanent disability, and every injury is given a ranking as to what percentage of permanent disability the injury has caused, be it a paper cut or loss of a limb. All injuries incur some percentage of permanent disability. Therefore the worker must be compensated for the impact it has on the rest of his life, not just their time at Bethel.

  Additionally, it seems quite disingenuous on the Society's part to refuse a workers comp case on the basis of the Bethelite being a voluntary worker and not an employee in the traditional sense because due to the language of the oath one takes when getting baptised, all JWs are quite literally employees of the WTS. In fact, in 1983, the language of the oath was adjusted because the original language did not allow the WTS to legitimately disfellowship anyone. Anyone baptised prior to 1983, who was later disfellowshipped has a good legal basis to sue the Society for defamation of character among other things. The change of 1983 essentially made every Witness an employee, and therefore gave the WTS the right to "fire" anyone for any reason.

  All of that aside, why are "Satanic, worldly" companies more appreciative, compassionate and willing to give due compensation to their workers than JWs and the WTS are to theirs? I think we all know it's because the WTS is a cult that is interested in its own wealth and jealously protects the lavish lifestyles of their rich and famous Governing Body.

  Shawn
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  Shawn10538

  ....Oh and the point of my question is that JWs cite the scriptural advice to not be suing a brother as applicable in any case where a brother might sue the society. My response is that the WTS is not a person, it is an organizational entity, but not alive like a human, so the scripture does not apply. My point would be better served, however, if I could cite some cases where the WTS used my logic in reverse and actually sued a fellow Witness. I'm sure they have, without a doubt, but who, when and where? Thanks for any input.
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  kls

  All of that aside, why are "Satanic, worldly" companies more appreciative, compassionate and willing to give due compensation to their workers than JWs and the WTS are to theirs? I think we all know it's because the WTS is a cult that is interested in its own wealth and jealously protects the lavish lifestyles of their rich and famous Governing Body.

  Shawn

  Welcome Shawn and i don,t have an answer for you but am sure someone here will, but i think this quote above is worth repeating.
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  serendipity

  Hi Shawn and welcome!
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  silentWatcher

  the WTS is a cult that is interested in its own wealth
  
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  priceless quote. Actually, this worker's comp thing is a BIG deal. I'd be surprised if they don't move all production out of NY over this.
  
  Good luck with your case.
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  feelinsketchy

  Maybe a better question is, " Why should someone have to sue the society to obtain compensation for an injury?"

  Here is a scenario to consider. A young brother goes to school to obtain a degree as a surveyor. While working at Wallkill on the new printery he is hit in the head by a falling peace of debris and loses sight in one eye. Because of the injury, he cannot work at his chosen profession, and because of his age, he has literally lost a lifetime of income as well as the pain and emotional trauma caused by his injury. Literally, monetarily, he could be awarded millions of dollars for his loss. And no one would argue that he did not have just cause. This would not be a superfluous lawsuit.

  Why would someone have to resort to legal action to force the Society to compensate for their loss? This should be a no-brainer. The Society is benefiting from the persons expertise and will continue to benefit from the profits of the construction of the new printery. Even according to scriptural precedent, someone who is injured by a "bull" was compensated by the owner. It is clear that the Society has benefited from the free labor of thousands of willing workers without regard to the injuries they no doubt endured. Why not step up to the plate and pay up?

  Because it would mean giving up billions in profits that fund a lifestyle of prominence and excess that no one wants to give up. I used to marvel at the fact that the GB did not receive any more than anyone else at Bethel.. My naivete as well as millions of others was taken advantage of. We did not wake up to the fact that the chosen few at headquarters were receiving perks and green handshakes by the dozen while we swabbed toilets and sold tickets for Jesus.
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  Oroborus21

  Shaun,

  Read the thread on the Workman's Comp issue. WC is an insurance issue it isn't a litigative one.

  Regarding permissible or should I say "lawsuits which are not contrary to the scriptures" between brothers, the Society has acknowledged and I have personally had a CO acknowledge to me that lawsuits between brothers may be ok when it is not really a dispute but more a matter of formality.

  For example in insurance cases, such as auto-insurance and accidents, a situation might arise where in order to satisfy the claim or even to be covered to make a claim, some insurance companies might require that a person be named in a lawsuit or that a police report be taken which indicates that the brother was at fault, etc. In no-fault jurisdictions it might not be necessary, but in some other situations and jurisdictions it might be necessary to name a brother or a brother's business in a lawsuit or to file an insurance claim in order to ultimately recover or due to the insurance company's seeking to recover its loss.

  So if you have a similar situation which rests upon the same principles, you are probably on safe scriptural grounds to file your Worker's Comp or other insurance claim without it bringing into disrepute the congregation or Jehovah's servants.

  -Eduardo Leaton Jr., Esq.
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  Oroborus21

  PS: Regarding this:

  All of that aside, why are "Satanic, worldly" companies more appreciative, compassionate and willing to give due compensation to their workers than JWs and the WTS are to theirs? I think we all know it's because the WTS is a cult that is interested in its own wealth and jealously protects the lavish lifestyles of their rich and famous Governing Body.

  Shawn

  That's nonsense. Aside from JWs not being a cult, "worldly" companies are no more compassionate, they are legally required as are most employers to comply with WC and other such employment laws. They are lawfully bound it has nothing to do with morality or being good citizens or community members. If these companies could cut these costs lawfully they would do it in a heartbeat.

  -Eduardo
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  Shawn10538

  Thanks for the above comments. I just want to reply to Eduardo. First of all, according to every cult expert, exit counselor or any professional who regularly deals with destructive mind control cults: Jehovah's Witnesses are a cult. It's a universally accepted fact by everyone except for the members of the cult itself. If you are a JW, then of course you are not going to say that you are in a cult. What cult member ever admitted to being in a cult? None. No cult member ever thinks they are in a cult. That is part of what makes them a cult member is that they do not have an objective view of themselves. If they did, then they would leave. If you are not and have never been a JW, then, you don't know the criteria for what makes a certain group a cult. Look it up. Simply read Realeasing the Bonds by Steven Hassan or a number of other books written on the subject. I have yet to read a book on cults that does not place JWs as a textbook example of a socially destructive mind control cult. If JWs aren't a cult, then neither are Moonies, Scientologists, Heaven's Gate, People's Temple, Branch Dividians because they all meet exactly the same criteria.

  As far as the statement about worldly companies being compassionate, let me rephrase: The law makers who invented workers compensation and anyone who was involved in the process of voting it into law and anyone who respects the principles of workers compensation, including companies such as labor brokers who CAN opt to operate under loopholes to the WC laws, yet who choose to arrange for WC anyway, (I have one specific example in mind if you need it) are all more compassionate to the workers who benefit from such laws than the WTS, since the WTS vehemently fights to not have to take care of its beloved and appreciated workers when they are injured in their factories.

  I'm not so naive as to literally believe that for profit companies would sooner dispense of WC, but there are many companies that bend over backwards to work under some loop hole in the law, like calling their employees independent contractors, when they know darn well that they are more like employees, or hiring undocumented workers. This is what the Society does, it says that they are not employees at all, similar to those who say that their workers are independent contractors, yet who pay the workers by the hour at a rate close to minimum wage and act like their bosses and fire at will and most of all who never actually write up contracts for their so-called contractors. I worked under this arrangement for many years for Witness contractors, in one case I injured my knee and the brother just said, "Sorry, you are not my employee." His name is John Mitchell of Azusa, CA and his company is JM Construction. This man bends over backwards to not pay WC.

  "Worldly" Companies like Bigger Hammer, who is a labor contractor, technically has no law requiring it to carry WC insurance since its pool of laborers will be working as free lancers or be employed by the companies that hire them as temps via Bigger Hammer, yet Bigger Hammer insures every single person in its labor pool as a coutesy to its workers. This is a perk of that particular company and one feels taken care of and cared for when working with them.

  When I was at Bethel, any time I had to see an MD, I first had to wade through a sea of assistants who seemed to have the sole purpose of minimizing my injuries and making sure I knew how much I was costing the society. Once I suggested that I might need an MRI and the physical therapist lectured me on how expensive they are! I never got that MRI. This was extremely unethical to try to shame a person out of getting needed treatment by proposing that I was being a "burden on the brothers."

  So, again, I say, the Society in significantly less compassionate than worldly Satanic governments who made laws to protect workers from unscrupulous rackets like the WTS.

  Shawn
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  BrendaCloutier

  So, again, I say, the Society in significantly less compassionate than worldly Satanic governments who made laws to protect workers from unscrupulous rackets like the WTS.

  Shawn

  I don't know about less compassionate: How compassionate was Enron, etc.?

  The WTBTS is like any other business - religious, non-profit, or not - they want to make a buck, to fill their coffers. Since Harmageddon didn't happen in 1975, the society seems more and more bent on making more and more bucks, and are willing to hid behind any loophole they can to keep as much as they can.