Honeywell Retirees At Michigan Factory Lose Insurance Appeal

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BOYNE CITY, Mich. (AP) - A federal appeals court has overturned a decision that preserved health insurance for retirees who worked at Honeywell International in northern Michigan.

Honeywell was sued by roughly 50 people who said the company had promised to provide benefits until age 65. A federal judge in Grand Rapids stepped in and halted Honeywell's plan to end benefits in 2016 while the litigation was ongoing.

But an appeals court said Thursday that Judge Janet Neff made the wrong call with her injunction. The court says retirees at the Boyne City factory are unlikely to win the lawsuit and didn't qualify for the injunction.

The court says it looked at portions of Honeywell's contract with the UAW and didn't find a commitment to keep retiree benefits going after the contract expired in 2016.