Superior Court Ruling Protects Jobs of Domestic Violence Victims
Posted By Administrator on September 29, 2009
Victims of domestic violence won an important victory when New London Superior Court Judge A. Susan Peck ruled that employers cannot terminate workers simply because they are victims of domestic violence. The ruling creates a new public policy exception in Connecticut’s employment-at-will doctrine, which allows employees to be fired for any reason or for no reason at all.
After suffering a brutal assault by her husband on February 7, 2007, Heather Gilles filed a complaint with the Groton Police Department. Her doctor advised her to reduce her work hours to 20 per week while she recuperated from her injuries and bruises. Gilles, who was employed by the Stonington Free Library as its assistant director was told at a March 15, 2007 meeting that she could no longer serve in that position. She was terminated on March 30, 2007.
Gilles sued the library for wrongful discharge. Documents filed in connection with the lawsuit state that library officials claimed Gilles was terminated due to staff reorganization. However, board minutes from an April 16, 2007 meeting mention both the reorganization “and personal circumstances of Heather Gilles” as reasons why she was terminated.
Gilles’ complaint alleges that during the March 15, 2007 meeting, library board vice president Marc Ginsberg advised her not to talk about her “situation” with any library patrons because it would “reflect poorly on the library,” the lawsuit said. Gilles alleged that the library “considered her to be an embarrassment due to the fact she had been abused by her husband.”
Connecticut currently has a statute to prevent victims who have sought a protective order or made a police report from being fired. Under Connecticut General Statute 54-85b, if a qualifying individual applies within 90 days of being fired, the employer can be fined up to $500 and found in criminal contempt. The civil action would allow a prevailing plaintiff to collect attorneys’ fees as well as damages. Gilles’ attorney did not rely on that statute in the court pleadings.
According to Hartford employment lawyer Peter Janus, court-made exemptions to the employment-at-will rule only come along every five to 10 years. Such exemptions can be significant landmarks for employment lawyers.
[Source: Connecticut Law Tribune]
Editor’s Note: For information on domestic violence visit the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
Update: The Hartford Courant published an article on November 22, 2009 focusing on this case and other domestic violence issues. Read Fired Worker’s Lawsuit Puts Spotlight On Workplace Treatment Of Domestic Violence Victims
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