Turner Grain suit set for trial in '18
A circuit judge in Lonoke County has set a July 2018 trial date for a lawsuit brought by rice farmers against officials and related entities of the bankrupt Turner Grain Merchandising Inc.
The trial had been set for 18 days this month but was postponed by Circuit Judge Sandy Huckabee as both sides continued to wrestle with the other's motions to provide various documents and records related to the case.
The farmers weren't paid for some $6 million in grain in the months leading up to the Brinkley company's closure in August 2014. They're seeking payment, plus unspecified punitive damages. Besides Turner Grain, defendants include KBX Inc., a grain dealer in Benton.
The new schedule has the trial starting July 9, 2018, and ending Aug. 3, 2018.
Federal regulators closed Turner Grain after they found no grain in bins despite grain certificates saying otherwise. Two months later, Turner Grain Merchandising Inc. filed for bankruptcy, listing $23.8 million in debts and $13.8 million in assets. The debts later were amended to $47 million.
-- Stephen Steed
Wal-Mart expands military-pay policy
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is expanding its pay policy for military workers, offering differential pay to employees taking a leave of absence for any military assignment lasting more than three days.
The policy change, announced Tuesday, covers the difference in pay if an employee's military salary is less than what he makes working for the retailer. The expanded policy now includes basic training so workers who are considering enlisting can make the decision "without fear of losing wages," according to the announcement.
Wal-Mart said employees took more than 4,400 military leaves of absence last year.
Wal-Mart has hired more than 170,000 veterans since announcing its Veterans Welcome Home Commitment in 2013. The retailer originally set a goal of hiring 100,000 veterans by the end of 2018, but it has since expanded its efforts to hire 250,000 by the end of 2020.
-- Robbie Neiswanger
State index steady, finishes day up 0.53
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed up 0.53 to 327.25 Tuesday.
"The major averages advanced, extending gains for a fourth straight session after the White House released the 2018 proposed budget," said Bob Williams, senior vice president and managing director of Simmons First Investment Group Inc. in Little Rock.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business on 05/24/2017