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The
Associated Press reports that a jury recently found that Dole should
pay $2.5 million in punitive damages to five workers who claimed they
were made sterile by use of a pesticide on Nicaraguan banana
plantations in the 1970s. The Superior Court jury awarded
$3.3 million in actual damages to six workers, most of it to be paid by
California-based Dole Fresh Fruit Co. and the remainder by Dow Chemical
Co. of Michigan. The jury''s finding that Dole acted maliciously in
harming five of the six allowed punitive damages to be considered for
the five. The
punitive damages were to be split evenly among the five workers exposed
to the pesticide known as DBCP. Twelve workers originally filed the
lawsuit, but the jury determined that only six had been substantially
harmed by the pesticide DBCP. The six were awarded actual damages
ranging from $311,200 to $834,000 each. The case marked the first time
a U.S. jury heard a lawsuit involving sterility and DBCP. Legal experts
said the case raised the issue of whether multinational companies
should be held accountable in the country where they are based or the
countries where they employ workers. The lawsuit named Westlake
Village, Calif.-based Dole Food Co., Dole Fresh Fruit Co., Standard
Fruit Co., and Standard Fruit and Steamship Co. The Standard companies
are now part of Dole. Also sued were Dow and Amvac Chemical Co.,
manufacturers of the pesticide. The lawsuit accused Dole of negligence
and fraudulent concealment while using DBCP. It alleged the
manufacturers knew it could leave workers sterile and concealed that
information. Amvac reached a $300,000 settlement before the trial.
