Seven Figure Jury Verdict – Horinek v. Spirit AeroSystems, Inc. – 2025

A federal jury returned a substantial verdict in favor of longtime Spirit AeroSystems employee Greg Horinek, finding that Spirit unlawfully retaliated against him and discriminated against him after he reported serious workplace misconduct. Horinek, a Level A metals mechanic with approximately seventeen years of service in Spirit’s Bluestreak sheet-metal shop, raised repeated concerns about a coworker’s quality failures, falsification of records, and threatening behavior. After Spirit declined to act on those complaints—and after Horinek contacted law enforcement regarding a threat to his family—Spirit terminated him based on a disputed shop-floor incident that the jury rejected as pretextual. The jury awarded $250,000 in economic damages, $250,000 in non-economic damages, and $2 million in punitive damages, reflecting a clear finding that Spirit’s stated reason for termination was not credible and that its conduct warranted significant punishment.  The case involved not only whistleblower retaliation but lies to federal officials investigating Mr. Horinek’s termination.  The economic damages portion of the verdict was reduced to account for backpay received through the union arbitration process.  Graybill & Hazlewood attorney Sean McGivern is proud to represent Mr. Horinek and others who are harmed by corporations and governments.