Compass Group Sued Over Worker Health Plan’s Penalty for Smokers

Hospitality and dining company Compass Group USA Inc. was hit with a proposed class action saying it wrongly charges higher health insurance premiums to workers who smoke without giving them a valid method for avoiding the penalty.

Tobacco-using employees of Compass and various subsidiaries are charged at least $1,248 in extra fees each year to remain on the company’s health-care plan, former workers at two Compass units said in a complaint filed Wednesday in the US District Court for the Western District of Missouri.

The company allows workers to avoid the penalty on a forward-looking basis if they complete a ...