Report: Sen. Durbin blasts Abbott over layoffs, separation agreement

Senator Dick Durbin (Ill.-D) is laying into Abbott (NYSE:ABT) after the company announced it’s laying off approximately 150 workers and sending their jobs overseas, according to The Chicago Tribune.

The Illinois senator said he sent a letter last Thursday to Abbott CEO Miles White over the lost jobs, which the paper says are being outsourced to India-based information technology services firm Wipro.

Durbin was most concerned with the separation agreement he claims laid-off Abbott workers are required to sign as a condition for severance benefits. In the letter, the Senator said the workers are being asked to “sign away their right to sue or disparage the company,” the Chicago Tribune reports.

“I am deeply disappointed that your response confirmed you are replacing these workers, who have dedicated years of loyal service to your company, with contractors from Wipro, an Indian company that specializes in outsourcing American jobs. I know from recent conversations that this layoff has taken its toll on the morale of your remaining workforce,” Durbin wrote in his letter.

A day before sending the letter, Durbin spoke on the senate floor concerning the layoffs at Abbott and urging for reform to the H-1B program.

“This non-disparagement provision also does not make clear that a current or former Abbott employee can communicate with government agencies regarding workplace discrimination. This is especially troubling given the circumstances of these employees’ termination. As I am sure you are aware, employees have a legal right to communicate with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and comparable federal, state, and local agencies,” Durbin said.

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