Guatemalan union leaders sue Coca-Cola

NEW YORK, March 3 (UPI) -- Union leaders filed suit in New York against Coca-Cola Co. for failing to address issues of anti-union violence in Guatemala, court papers show.

Part of the claim filed in the New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan says Coca-Cola offered union leader Jose Armando Palacios protection for his family in exchange for him forfeiting his worker rights at Coca-Cola plant in Guatemala City, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Wednesday.

Palacios and his family emigrated to the United States after a series of violent incidents in Guatemala.

The lead attorney for the plaintiffs is Terry Collingsworth, who has battled Coca-Cola with lawsuits for a decade, the newspaper said.

The company called the lawsuit "forum-shopping."

"We maintain there is no truth in these allegations. The fact of the matter is, we haven't been involved. No knowledge of the violence, no involvement in the violence," said Coca-Cola spokeswoman Angela Harrell.