employer discriminated against me during pregnancy and terminated me without just cause

In the early part of 2001 I informed my employer that I was pregnant and due in November. Almost immediatly afterword I suddenly found myself being witten up and placed on warning after warning. All of my reviews up to that point were satisfactory and above, she(my boss)even went so far as to use the word "expert" in my December 2000 review. The warnings were sometimes based on exagerated truths, sometimes for things that were not my responsability in the first place, and sometimes for things that seemed completely fabricated all together. Finally as my due date neared and I was on a 3rd level warning unable to even take the personal time that I had on the books to see a doctor for my increasing health problems (probably due to stress), I hinted at a lawsuit and was taken off of warning all together and granted FMLA. About a month into my leave a friend at the office called me at home to inform me that the record showed me due back that week. I went to the office to correct the situation through my supervisor and was left waiting for hours untill I finally gave up and called from home later that day. I thought that I had corrected the problem, I explained to her that I was entitled to 90 days and intended to take it. She assured me that she would take care of the records to reflect that. 10 days before I was due back to work I recieved a letter in the mail informing me that I was being terminated on the grounds that I had abandoned my job. The letter stated that I was due back the previous week and because I had not reported in or called to change my expected return date for 3 consecutive days I was being fired, again I still had 10 days per company policy. My situation was the 3rd almost identical situation in the last year of my employment, all in the same department (HR). I have since filed for unemployment benefits and was approved. The determination stated that "a review of the facts establishes that there was not enough fault on the part of the claimant in his/her acts, omissions or course of conduct that an ordinary person would find the discharge justifiable". My employer appealed the decision with the Ohio Director's Office and lost the appeal. I just received a letter from the Review Commision stating that my employer has again appealed and this time there will be a hearing.

I am in California and am totally unable to defend myself in court in Ohio. How can I fight this, and do I have a right to sue?

1 answer  |  asked Aug 14, 2002 01:25 AM [EST]  |  applies to California

Answers (1)

Janet M. Koehn
did you work in california?

if so, why are you applying for unemployment in ohio?
your facts are unclear. if you worked in california however, you may be entitled to up to seven months of leave for pregnancy/childbirth, not merely the twelve weeks (not ninety days, which is thirteen weeks) you claim under fmla. if you worked in ohio, you may have other rights under ohio law.
you need to see an attorney experienced in employment law pronto. if you are in southern california, please call me for an appointment.
janet m. koehn
805-658-0655

posted by Janet M. Koehn  |  Aug 14, 2002 11:42 AM [EST]

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