Clinical laboratory scientist (CLS) Kathleen Hamada has alleged that Community Hospitals of Central California discriminated against her due to her medical condition and failed to accept her disability to work regularly. She blamed them for retaliating and creating hostile working conditions for her.
Community Hospitals of Central California is the parent company of Community Medical Centers in Fresno, California where the victim was employed.
As per the court documents, Hamada filed a lawsuit on March 22 in Fresno County Superior Court alleging discrimination at her workplace based on her medical condition, failure to accommodate her disability, violation of medical leave laws, creation of hostile working conditions, wrongful termination among other charges against her employer.
Hamada’s lawyer stated that as per California state law an employee is allowed to take up to 12 weeks of leave a year for a serious medical condition. It is illegal for an employer to retaliate against an employee for requesting and taking that medical leave.
The lawsuit states that Hamada had been working as a clinical laboratory scientist for Community Hospitals of Central California from July 1, 1987. On October 13, 2020, she was wrongfully terminated. Hamada had become sick with Covid-19 in April 2020 and was on medical leave for six weeks. After returning from leave she still suffered from the effects of Covid-19, hence her healthcare provider suggested she apply for intermittent medical leave. She continued to suffer from illness and had underlying medical conditions like diabetes, cardio-pulmonary disease and brain injury.
However, when Hamada requested for additional leave her supervisor told her not to apply for the same. She said that she was shunned by her supervisor and coworkers and also disciplined for attendance related matters. In October 2020 she was terminated for violating the employer’s attendance policy.
Hamada has challenged her wrongful termination and has requested the jury to award her special damages, punitive damages, interest on lost earnings, deferred compensation and benefits, reinstatement of her job.
What is Wrongful termination?
When an employee is sacked from his job for an illegal reason it is considered Wrongful termination. In such situations, the employee can sue the employer and recover damages. In California, in many cases, the employer has been asked to pay a substantial amount of penalties for the wrongful termination of an employee.
How to file a wrongful termination lawsuit?
If an employee has been wrongfully terminated he will have to follow all the required administrative procedures specified under the California labor laws. The employee will also have to prove that the termination violated any public policy or law.
Over the last two decades, we at Khashan Law have been representing our clients who have been treated unfairly at work or have been wrongly terminated. We have been fighting to get them justice and their due compensation. We represent our clients in wrongful termination lawsuits on a contingency fee basis. This means that our clients don’t have to pay us fees unless we win the case and get them their compensation.
We are totally dedicated towards helping the poor employees fight against their employer for justice. If you believe that you have been not treated fairly at your workplace or have been wrongfully terminated, contact us at Khashan Law at (951) 461-2387 for a free, confidential consultation.