The families of two refinery workers who died last year in a crane collapse filed wrongful death lawsuits against a number of Texas companies. The lawsuits were filed in Texas state court in Jefferson County against Houston Refining, Wyatt Field Service Company, Kempco Inspection Services, All Test and Inspection, Cranesmart Systems, Cranesmart America and Deep South Crane and Rigging.

Daniel Johnson, Jr. and Marion Hubert Odom III were killed when a 30-story-tall crane collapsed at the Lydonell Basell refinery in Houston July 18, 2008. Two other workers and seven others were injured in the collapse.

The lawsuits seek damages for gross negligence, negligence and product liability. The plaintiffs allege that the boom, which was capable of holding more than one million pounds, was raised too high, causing the crane to fall over.

If you or anyone you know has an employment problem, contact the Houston employment lawyers of the Ross Law Group at 800-634-8042. 

When you find out that the company you work for or someone within that company is performing illegal acts, it is your duty to report it to authorities. Unfortunately, this can lead to retaliation from the company for marring its image.

While this may seem like a natural response, allowing acts of retaliation against a whistleblower is illegal. Any employee should feel safe in his or her work place, regardless of whether or not there is a whistleblower situation.

If you are experiencing retaliation at work, contact the Houston whistleblower protection attorneys of the Ross Law Group at 800-634-8042.

Houston City Council has delayed the HFD's antidiscrimination plan because of what has been described as a lack of transparency. The plan will need to be completely forward in its actions in order to uphold trust in the fire department.

Unfortunately, the two law firms chosen for the case have ties to the city, causing the delay. Critics say the legal parties in this case will have to be independent of the city in order to avoid a conflict of interest, real or perceived.

If you or someone you know has been facing discrimination at work, contact the Houston discrimination lawyers of the Ross Law Group at 800-634-8042.

With so much news about the Houston Fire Department recently, there has been a great deal of uproar about discrimination and harassment in the workplace. Unfortunately there have been several publicized cases of this in the HFD.

While harassment may seem commonplace to some, it is illegal and should be unacceptable in the workplace. No person should have to work under conditions in which he or she feels threatened.

If you have been discriminated against at work, contact the Houston discrimination attorneys of the Ross Law Group at 800-634-8042.

In 1975, Linda Honeycutt became the first female fire fighter in Texas and the second in the nation. She retired from the Houston Fire Department in 1997 after 22 years of service. Recently, she expressed her opinion on the current scandal in the HFD.

Honeycutt said she had to endure a great deal of harassment in her time as a fire fighter. She also said that the harassment problems in the department are systemic and have been for some time.

If you are being harassed at work, contact the Houston employment attorneys of the Ross Law Group at 800-634-8042.

Last week, two women came forward about racial and sexual discrimination at Station 54. However, it would seem that they are far from the only ones affected by discrimination in the Houston Fire Department. The women's attorneys have spoken with five to ten other fire fighters who have faced similar issues in other stations.

According to the attorney for the women, it seems that HFD's grievance process for discrimination issues is "broken". Many fire fighters seem to be afraid of retaliation and do not come forward about their issues. The problem seems widespread in the department, and may be leading to a department-wide investigation.

If you or someone you know has been discriminated against, contact the Houston employment attorneys of the Ross Law Group at 800-634-8042.