August 27, 2025. The Seventh Circuit entered an Order denying Alcoa USA Corporation’s motion to stay a permanent injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Richard L. Young on March 28, 2025. (Lynette Kaiser et al. v. Alcoa USA Corp. et al., 25-1627, 7th Cir.)
Judge Young’s March Order ruled that Alcoa broke a promise in its collective bargaining agreements to provide lifetime healthcare benefits to union-represented workers who retired before June 1993, and directed Alcoa to restore the retirees’ access to the healthcare benefits plan it had moved them from in January 2021.
Before requesting the Seventh Circuit to pause Judge’s Young’s injunction while Alcoa appealed, Alcoa presented its request to Judge Young. That request was denied August 6.
This class action lawsuit was filed in December 2020 by a class of pre-June 1993 retirees and their unions (the United Steelworkers and the Aluminum Trades Council of Wenatchee, Washington) and was certified as a class action in September 2022.
The retirees and unions are represented by FDPK attorneys Joel R. Hurt and Ruairi McDonnell, and Barry Macey and Jeffrey Macey of Macey Swanson, LLP.