A lawsuit filed by an ex-employee against Swift Pork Company, a subsidiary of JBS USA, was removed to Kentucky federal court earlier this week. The lawsuit alleges that the defendant violated the Kentucky Civil Rights Act (KCRA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
According to the state court complaint, the plaintiff was employed by the defendant as a occupational health nurse from September 2019 until her termination in February 2021. The plaintiff said she is a disabled worker, whose conditions substantially interfere with her major life activities.
While working for the defendant, the plaintiff said she disclosed her disabilities to multiple managers in order to receive the necessary accommodations. Not long after notifying her managers, one allegedly began to scrutinize and criticize the plaintiff. The plaintiff was told to contact human resources by another manager. However, after contacting HR, no corrective steps were taken by the defendant. Furthermore, the plaintiff received a write up four days after contacting HR.
In September 2020, the plaintiff said she had her internist complete FMLA paperwork certifying the plaintiff’s lifelong conditions and/or disabilities dating back to 2014. The defendant’s HR documented the receipt of the paperwork on October 6, 2020. According to the complaint, there is no evidence that the defendant’s human resources department applied any FMLA/disability entitlement retroactively to any of the plaintiff’s absences that occurred prior to their receipt of paperwork. One of the disability accommodations the plaintiff receives is the allowance of absences the plaintiff needs due to her disabilities.
The defendant allegedly issued a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) to the plaintiff, with an expiration of 60 days, demanding that attendance must approve. After the plaintiff had successfully completed her PIP, she took two days off in February and had one day of lateness due to her disability. In late February 2021, the plaintiff was notified that she was being terminated by the defendant, who had claimed the PIP was 90 days instead of the aforementioned 60.
The plaintiff is represented by Robyn Smith Law.
