Cable v. State Ex Rel. Employers Insurance Co. of Nevada

**What Happened** When Nevada privatized its State Industrial Insurance System, former state employees who moved to the new private company (Employers Insurance Company of Nevada) claimed they were entitled to retirement service credit buyouts. These workers argued that state law promised them the ability to "cash out" certain retirement credits when the agency was privatized, but the state disagreed and refused to provide these benefits. **What the Court Decided** The Nevada Supreme Court sided with the workers. The court reversed a lower court's decision that had favored the state and ruled that eligible former state employees were indeed entitled to statutory retirement service credit buyouts under Nevada law. Specifically, workers who were eligible to retire with full or reduced benefits could receive these buyouts when the privatization occurred. **Why This Matters for Workers** This ruling protects public employees' retirement benefits during government privatization. It establishes that when a government agency becomes private, workers don't automatically lose their accumulated retirement rights. If state law provides for retirement benefit buyouts during such transitions, eligible employees can enforce these promises in court, ensuring they receive the compensation they earned through their government service.