Call or email us anytime
(805) 484-0333
Search Guide
Today is Thursday, March 28, 2024 -

News Articles

2nd Lawsuit Filed Against CAAIR; Secular Foundation Accuses It of 'Religious Coercion'

  • National
  • Topic: NATIONAL
  • - Popular with: Legal
  • -  0 shares

A second federal lawsuit has been filed against the Christian Alcoholics and Addicts in Recovery (CAAIR) program, a court-ordered drug rehabilitation program that forced participants to work for free for poultry plants, sending them to jail when they were injured on the job — and, in some cases, pocketing their workers' compensation benefits. 

Bodhi Chance Starns and Lucas Don Miller-Allen have accused CAAIR of racketeering, human trafficking and labor law violations. 

In the wake of an investigative news report revealing that CAAIR took several participants' workers' compensation benefits and forced all participants to work for free for 40 hours per week with no compensation but "bologna sandwiches and bunk-bed housing," the program is under investigation by multiple government agencies and is the subject of two federal lawsuits, Reveal News reported.

The administrator of the Tulsa, Oklahoma, drug court has said the court will rethink sending drug offenders to CAAIR. And a nonprofit organization that encourages the separation of church and state sent letters to 24 Oklahoma courts this week imploring them to cut ties with the program, stating that its "depth of religious coercion was staggering." 

In addition to requiring participants to work full-time for poultry-processing plants owned by Simmons Foods, CAAIR ordered them to attend mandatory Bible study and, for their first four months in the program, mandatory church services.

Every few months, a Christian acting troupe named For His Glory Drama Ministries would perform religious sketches at CAAIR in which an actor portrayed Jesus Christ, the letter said. Attendance to those was mandatory as well. 

Reveal has reported that the program did not provide drug or alcohol treatment aside from the 12-step program pioneered by Alcoholics Anonymous, which includes believing in God among its steps. And its counseling sessions often consisted of requiring men to watch Christian-themed films and church sermons, the letter from the Freedom from Religion Foundation stated.

Michael Duff, a law professor at the University of Wyoming who authored a textbook on workers' compensation law, mentioned CAAIR in the context of a keynote speech on the erosion of the grand bargain he delivered at the Workers' Injury Law Group's annual convention last week. The speech was called "Meta Power Grabs."

Pointing out the fact that CAAIR told participants that they were not eligible for workers' comp, Duff asked, "If work is so much safer and better — why is the system trying so hard to completely extinguish claims?"

CAAIR required participants to sign forms stating they were ineligible for workers' compensation benefits as "clients, not employees," of the program. In Arkansas, however, the organization applied for workers' compensation benefits on at least three participants' behalf, pocketing the indemnity benefits.

The Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission is now investigating CAAIR. 

No Comments

Log in to post a comment

Close


Do not post libelous remarks. You are solely responsible for the postings you input. By posting here you agree to hold harmless and indemnify WorkCompCentral for any damages and actions your post may cause.

Advertisements

Upcoming Events

  • May 13-15, 2024

    NCCI's Annual Insights Symposi

    Join us May 13–15, 2024, for NCCI's Annual Insights Symposium (AIS) 2024, the industry’s premier e …

  • Jul 29 – Aug 2, 2024

    76th Annual SAWCA Convention

    SAVE THE DATE! 76th Annual SAWCA Convention July 29 – August 2, 2024 Hotel Effie Sandestin 1 Grand …

  • Aug 14-17, 2024

    CSIMS 2024 Annual Dual Track C

    California Society of Industrial Medicine and Surgery (CSIMS) is combining its two conferences, PI …

Workers' Compensation Events

Social Media Links


WorkCompCentral
c/o Business Insurance Holdings, Inc.
PO Box 1010
Greenwich, CT 06836
(805) 484-0333