BANGOR, Maine — A federal jury Thursday awarded a Milford woman $15,000 in back pay after it found her former employer, Woodlands Senior Living of Brewer, interfered with her right to take family medical leave because she was pregnant.
Christy Dorr worked at the assisted living and memory care facility for three years before she was fired on June 26, 2014, according to court documents. She said she left her shift the previous day for reasons related to her pregnancy and medical conditions. Dorr, who was a certified residential medication aide at the facility, was fired the next day.
“The jury concluded that Ms. Dorr had been terminated because of her protected medical conditions and that Woodlands Senior Living of Brewer had failed to provide her with protected leave under the federal Family Medical Leave Act,” her attorney, Chad Hansen of Portland, said Friday in a press release.
Woodlands’ Portland attorney, Michael Messerschmidt, did not issue a statement on his client’s behalf Friday but pointed out that the verdict was not entirely in Dorr’s favor.
Documents filed in the case said that Dorr walked off a shift after she learned her boyfriend was cheating on her with a co-worker. She claimed to have had a panic attack that rendered her unable to finish her shift. Dorr admitted leaving work without notifying a supervisor.
She filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in March 2015, about a month after giving birth to her child and after receiving a right-to-sue letter from the Maine Human Rights Commission and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the complaint states.
She also claimed that she was discriminated against on the basis of her pregnancy and a pre-existing medical disability and that she was fired in retaliation for trying to take leave under the Family Medical Leave Act.
Jurors found that Woodlands did not discriminate against Dorr because of her pregnancy. They did find the facility discriminated against her on the basis of a disability but said she was not entitled to damages. Jurors found she was not fired as a result of retaliation and refused to award Dorr punitive damages.
The eight-person jury deliberated about 2½ hours before announcing its verdict and the monetary award that represents about 42 weeks of pay for Dorr, Hansen said.
U.S. Magistrate Judge John Nivison could double the award after the first of the year if he determines that Woodlands’ managers knowingly violated the family leave law, Hansen said.
The judge also could order the facility to change its policies and pay Dorr’s attorney’s fees and costs.