You have received this mailing from the Washington Alliance of Technology Workers. For information about subscribing or unsubscribing, skip to the end of this mail. ---------------------------------------------- May 12, 1999 COURT: MICROSOFT PERMATEMPS CAN PURCHASE STOCK AT DISCOUNT A federal appeals court has handed a major victory to Microsoft's long-term contractors, or permatemps, by ruling that they have the right to participate in the company's Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP). The ESPP allows employees to purchase company stock at a 15 percent discount during specified times each year. The ruling, which came down late Wednesday afternoon, also overturned an earlier decision by Federal District Judge Carolyn Dimmick that had reduced the size of the class to several hundred contract employees who worked at Microsoft between 1987 and 1990. Wednesday's decision restored the appeals court's previous class definition -- a broader definition that covers all past and present common-law employees of Microsoft and easily puts the class size at several thousand people. "We are very happy the court restored the class to its original size," said Stephen Strong, an attorney representing the plaintiffs. "Thousands of Microsoft workers have worked full-time for years without employee benefits. This will allow them to obtain the employee recognition they are due." To read the full report, see: http://www.washtech.org/roundup/courts/051299_vizcaino.html ----------------------------------------------- The WashTech-News, a free digest of news of the Washington Alliance of Technology Workers, is delivered via email bi-monthly or whenever issues warrant. We accept all confirmed subscriptions to the newsletter. The WashTech-News subscriber list is a private list whose membership will not be disclosed outside this organization. To subscribe by e-mail, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the text SUBSCRIBE WashTech-News in the body of the message. You will receive e-mail confirming your subscription. To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the text UNSUBSCRIBE WashTech-News as the body of the message Copyright (c) 1999 WashTech All Rights Reserved ----------------------------------------------- Published by: WashTech 2366 Eastlake Ave E, #301 Seattle, WA 98102 U.S.A. (206) 726-8580 [EMAIL PROTECTED] ----------------------------------------------- This publication may be freely copied or retransmitted provided it remains intact and without changes. Any unauthorized partial duplication will be considered a copyright infringement.
