A District Court judge has ruled that Tennessee Commerce Bancorp cannot delay in reinstating its former CFO to his old job as it appeals a federal order.
Judge William Haynes on Wednesday granted an injunction requested by the Department of Labor [2] that forced Tennessee Commerce to rehire George Fort, who was fired from the Franklin-based bank two years ago after going public with several governance issues.
Today, Haynes denied a motion filed by the company to stay that injunction, writing that it “is essentially an effort to ignore a clear Congressional mandate sought to be enforced by the Secretary” of Labor.
Tennessee Commerce officials could not be immediately reached this afternoon. In an e-mailed statement, Fort said, "I am gratified that the court continues to see this case in the same way that the U.S. Department of Labor and OSHA does" and that he looked forward to returning to his job.