Maine Employment Lawyer Blog

Today, the Maine Human Rights Commission found that Discovery House, a company that operates 14 for-profit methadone clinics around the country, unlawfully retaliated against former employees John Dana and Colleen Taylor for their opposition to sexual harassment in the workplace.

Mr. Dana and Ms. Taylor both worked at Discovery House's South Portland location as substance abuse counselors. During their employment at Discovery House, Mr. Dana and Ms. Taylor opposed sexual harassment perpetrated by a security guard and also by a supervisor. They complained about it and counseled fellow co-workers about their rights. They also complained that Discovery House took inadequate actions to address this sexual harassment and the hostile work environment it created. On July 15, 2009 they both met with the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Discovery House. Ms. Taylor told him that she had contacted the Maine Human Rights Commission about the sexual harassment in the workplace. Mr. Dana also told him of his concerns about the sexual harassment. The company fired both Mr. Dana and Ms. Taylor the very next day.

Mr. Dana worked for Discovery House a little over two years and Ms. Taylor worked there a little under two years. They had positive performance reviews and had received no other discipline. Yet, Discovery House claimed that it fired both Mr. Dana and Ms. Taylor because they were "not a good fit." It also claimed that it fired them because they displayed "constant negativity" and disrupted their business operations. The Maine Human Rights Commission found that these explanations were likely just a pretext for discrimination.

Discovery House did not follow the progressive disciplinary policy in its employment policies when it fired Mr. Dana and Ms. Taylor. Instead of issuing them some form of discipline short of termination for their alleged "negativity," Discovery House chose to fire them. The Maine Human Rights Commission found it significant that the company merely issued a warning to the supervisor who sexually harassed employees, instead of firing him.

Chad T. Hansen of the Maine Employee Rights Group represents both Mr. Dana and Ms. Taylor.

An investigator with the Maine Human Rights Commission (MHRC) has found that On the Edge Chipping in Phillips, Maine unlawfully fired Daniel Harnden, a skidder operator, because Mr. Harnden complained about charges the company put on his personal John Deere account. Mr. Harnden complained to On the Edge about the charges on December 4, 2009 and called John Deere on January 15, 2010 to tell it that On the Edge made charges to his account. Days later, On the Edge fired Mr. Harnden allegedly for performance issues.

The MHRC investigator found that most of the alleged performance issues On the Edge claimed it fired Mr. Harnden for stemmed from incidents that occurred long before Mr. Harnden complained about On the Edge making charges to his John Deere account. If On the Edge was really going to fire Mr. Harnden for those incidents, it would have done so long before Mr. Harnden made his complaints about the John Deere charges.

The MHRC will vote whether to adopt or reject the investigator's recommendation at its next meeting on October 31, 2011. If the MHRC agrees with the investigator, and finds reasonable grounds to believe that On the Edge violated Mr. Harnden's rights, the MHRC will attempt to facilitate a settlement between Mr. Harnden and On the Edge. If there is no settlement, a lawsuit could ensue.

The former CFO for Proskauer Rose, a large law firm in New York, has sued it for disability discrimination. The former CFO, Elly Rosenthal, claims that the law firm demoted her and then fired her because she had breast cancer that required her to take medical leave. Ms. Rosenthal, who had served as the firm's CFO since 1992, took several weeks of medical leave in 2008 while she underwent two surgeries to treat her cancer. According to Ms. Rosenthal, some in the law firm were supportive of her but others were not. So, when she was fired she felt "blindsided." "I don't know how we went from 'Elly, get well and there will always be a place for you' to 'By the way, be out of here in three days,'" said Ms. Rosenthal.

Interestingly, a large part of Proskauer Rose's business involves defending employers from employment discrimination lawsuits. Now, it has to defend itself.

If her allegations are true, Ms. Rosenthal is certainly not the first person to need medical leave from work to fight a life threatening disease and then lose her job because of it. The Maine Employee Rights Group has represented employees who have faced similar circumstances. If your employer is discriminating against you because you need to take medical leave due to a serious illness or disability, you should contact the Maine Employee Rights Group to learn about your rights.

The Maine Human Rights Commission (MHRC) has found reasonable grounds to believe that Lank Machining discriminated against Ronald Vilandry because of his age. According to the report from the MHRC, Mr. Vilandry interviewed for a job with Lank Machining as a CNC Operator. Mr. Vilandry maintains that during his interview the owner of Lank Machining correctly surmised that Mr. Vilandry was in his 60's; told Mr. Vilandry that he was also in his 60's; and said that people their age should be thinking about retirement.

Instead of Mr. Vilandry, Lank Machining hired an applicant who was about 40 years old and less qualified than Mr. Vilandry. Mr. Vilandry had experience working with the equipment that Lank Machining used. The younger applicant that the company hired did not. Mr. Vilandry also had more experience, in general, than the younger applicant that the company hired. Lank Machining claimed that the younger applicant's lack of experience was irrelevant because it hired him for a position different than the CNC Operator position that Mr. Vilandry sought. This claim is contrary to what Lank Machining told the temp agency that it used to find the younger applicant. Lank Machining told the temp agency that it hired the younger applicant as a CNC Operator.

Mr. Vilandry is represented by Chad Hansen of the Maine Employee Rights Group.

A group of lawmakers in Ohio have introduced a bill, HB 335, that would ban discrimination against LGBT employees. The lawmakers who introduced the bill include a Republican. The Republican party currently controls both houses of the Ohio state legislature. The last time a similar bill was voted on in the Ohio legislature, it died in the Republican controlled state senate.

"Ohio can no longer afford to drive away the talented work force of tomorrow by not enacting this legislation," said Rep. Ross McGregor, a Republican from Springfield, Ohio. "... By enacting HB 335, we are saying that Ohio is a place where everyone can live and work free of discrimination."

According to the Human Rights Campaign, Maine, 19 other states, and the District of Columbia outlaw discrimination against employees based on sexual orientation. Maine, 14 other states, and the District of Columbia outlaw discrimination against employees based on their gender identity.