Opinion ID: 2994911
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Tri-Me as Heinemeier’s employer

Text: There are several known facts in this case that support the contention that Tri-Me alone employed Heinemeier. Initially, all of Heinemeier’s paychecks were printed on checks issued by Tri-Me and signed by Schenck, a Tri-Me officer. Similarly, Heinemeier’s W-2 forms for wage and tax statements reflect that her employer for the years 1992 through 1995 was Tri-Me; although she could not produce her W-2 forms for 1988-1991, Heinemeier conceded in her deposition that she believed these documents also stated that Tri-Me was her employer. In addition to these documents, the location and duties of her job support a conclusion that Heinemeier was employed at Tri-Me. Her primary employment responsibility was to audit freight bills Tri-Me generated when it transported copper scrap to Chemetco. Although these bills documented a transaction involving both Chemetco and Tri-Me, Heinemeier usually performed this work at a facility owned by Tri-Me in Granite City, Illinois. Furthermore, she reported directly to Schenck and later, other Tri- Me officers when she was transferred to another Tri-Me facility in Hazelwood, Illinois. The record also contains evidence, in the form of an apartment application, that Heinemeier believed herself to be a Tri-Me employee. When Heinemeier filled out an apartment application on April 11, 1994, she listed her position as Freight Audit Manager for Tri-Me and identified Tri-Me Vice President Juan Mena as her employer. Later in the application process, Heinemeier submitted a Request for Verification of Employment form that was signed by Mena as Vice-President for Tri-Me and contained no mention of Chemetco.