THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, May 15, 1995 TAG: 9505150038
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARC DAVIS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Long : 120 lines
Every day for 4 1/2 years, Davie L. Cox placed the same frayed Life Application Bible at his security desk at the Nestle plant. Every Thursday night, he taught fellow security guards the meaning of the Bible's words.
``That's the road map for me,'' Cox says. ``It deals with all of life's problems. It has all the correct answers.''
But in January, after eight years with Pinkerton Security Services, Cox was fired from his $15,000-a-year job as security supervisor at the Suffolk plant. He says it's because Nestle officials felt uncomfortable about his religious activities.
Now, Cox is suing Nestle and Pinkerton for $1 million, plus $350,000 in punitive damages, for religious discrimination.
``Mr. Cox was never warned by either Nestle or Pinkerton that the Bible studies were not allowed,'' his attorney, Gregory A. Giordano, wrote to the companies in February. ``In light of the fact that all guards are allowed to read books, do homework, talk on the telephone, study, etc., the inescapable conclusion is that Nestle and Pinkerton have engaged in invidious religious discrimination.''
Another security guard who participated in Cox's Bible studies agreed.
``There is no question whatsoever in my mind,'' guard Shawn Pantschyschak said in a March 7 affidavit, ``that Mr. Cox was terminated because of his religious beliefs, specifically his conducting of Bible studies in the guardhouse. . . .
``Immediately following Mr. Cox's termination, all religious literature and material, including religious audio tapes, were removed by Mr. Cox's replacement.''
The lawsuit, filed in Suffolk Circuit Court, names three defendants: Pinkerton, Nestle Beverage Co. and Rodney A. Taylor, security chief at Nestle.
Local officials for both companies referred questions to officers or lawyers in California, who declined to comment. Cox's former boss at Pinkerton, James F. Davis, said only, ``It's not as it seems to be.''
Cox, a 42-year-old Chesapeake resident, started work at the Nestle plant in 1990. From the beginning, he says, he made no secret of his Christian beliefs. At one point, he took about a month of vacation time to do missionary work in Australia with the Southern Baptist Association.
``Everyone knew I was a born-again Christian at Nestle,'' Cox said in an interview at his Chesapeake home. ``The operations manager told me, `That would never be a problem,' and with him it never was.''
For a year, Cox said, he attended a daily lunch-hour Bible group in the company gym. Nestle officials approved the 30-minute sessions, with Bible readings and prayers.
Later, Cox said, he began his own small Bible sessions with two fellow guards.
They met every Thursday night in the guardhouse from 7 to 8 p.m., when things were slow.
Cox and another guard came in during their off-time. The third member was on-duty, but the studies never interfered with his work, Cox said. If anything, Cox said, ``Really you got three guards for the price of one.''
For 12 weeks, the guards studied a 128-page book called the Survival Kit for New Christians. They decorated the guardhouse with religious slogans and crosses, and played Christian music.
``It's a way of life,'' Cox said. ``It's not something we do on Sunday and forget about the rest of the week.''
On Jan. 4, Cox's boss summoned him to the Pinkerton regional office in Norfolk. There, Cox said, his boss told him he was fired because ``this ongoing Bible study is the problem.'' Until then, Cox said, his work evaluations were always good and he never received a disciplinary warning.
Cox said his boss told him that Pinkerton ``will do anything to keep a client happy.''
``You could have knocked me over with a leaf,'' Cox said. ``After working for the company for eight years, that seemed a little on the sorry side to me.''
In his affidavit, Pantschyschak said the firing stemmed from a Dec. 8 incident, when a Nestle supervisor visited the guardhouse and saw the three men studying the Bible. Later, Pantschyschak said, the supervisor filed a report with Nestle's security chief.
After Cox was fired, Pantschyschak said, Cox's replacement removed all religious material from the guardhouse and told Pantschyschak, ``This is a place of business,'' and ``They don't want any of that stuff hanging or posted on the walls.''
The guards also were ordered not to play religious tapes because they ``made Rod Taylor nervous,'' Pantschyschak said.
Cox's termination letter cited two reasons for the firing: ``using client property for personal use'' and ``engaging on-duty officers in personal work.'' No details were provided.
When Cox applied for unemployment insurance, Pinkerton objected, but the Virginia Employment Commission ruled in his favor.
``Since there is no indication that you had been warned about your conduct,'' the commission wrote, ``it is the decision of the deputy that your discharge was not for misconduct in connection with work and you are eligible for benefits.''
Pinkerton appealed and said Cox was fired for ``unauthorized possession or a misappropriation of company property.'' Again, no details were provided.
Eventually, Pinkerton dropped the appeal.
Now, Cox said, he cannot find a new job, although he has applied for about 30. It is impossible, he said, because any new employer will want a reference from his old employer.
``He has resigned himself to the fact that his career in security work is ruined,'' wrote Giordano, Cox's lawyer.
Cox's old salary of $15,000 was meager enough for a family of four - his wife also works - but now the financial pressure is huge, Cox said. ``It's hard to explain to a 6-year-old why on a Saturday morning we can't go to McDonald's,'' he said.
Still, Cox said, his religious faith remains strong.
``No matter how ugly or bad this looks,'' Cox said, ``I'm confident God is going to turn this into good.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]
BILL TIERNAN
Staff
After eight years with Pinkerton Security Services, Davie L. Cox,
42, was fired from his $15,000-a-year job as a security guard at the
Nestle plant in Suffolk. He says the firing stemmed from his
religious activities.
KEYWORDS: RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT by CNB