BOCA RATON, Fla. (AFX) - Cross Country Healthcare Inc., which provides staffing services at public and private health care facilities, said late Monday it will settle a California wage lawsuit with payments of up to $10 million.
The company said it agreed in principle to settle a wage and hour class action lawsuit filed by California employees in 2003. The lawsuit was filed against one of the company's subsidiaries in Superior Court in Orange County.
The settlement would involve payments to eligible nurses, attorney fees and administrative costs. The company expects to record a third-quarter pretax charge of $8.8 million from the settlement, which is still awaiting court approval. The settlement would equate to a $5.4 million expense after taxes, or 17 cents per share, the company said.
'We believe this settlement will allow us and our shareholders to avoid the uncertainties and significant additional legal expenses that we would have incurred to further litigate this lawsuit. It has been a very expensive and distracting process for us over the past three years,' said Joseph A. Boshart, president and chief executive, in a statement.
Shares of Cross Country Healthcare fell 2 cents to close at $16 on the Nasdaq.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.