Healthcare nonprofit allegedly fires worker after VP admits bias on tape

That afternoon, according to the filing, HR emailed him renewal forms for his expired accommodation. The next morning, he confirmed he had sent the forms to his doctor.

Fifteen days after that HR meeting – and fourteen days after he submitted the renewal paperwork – Equitas fired him by Microsoft Teams call, the complaint alleges. The organization did not wait for his doctor’s response, follow up on the renewal, or make any accommodation decision before letting him go, according to the filing.

The termination document cited “continued deficiency” in budgeting, project management, grant administration, and people leadership, the complaint states. But seven weeks earlier, the worker’s own appraisal had rated him as meeting expectations in three of four performance categories, and his supervisor had committed to “continue to work together to build that skill” on budgeting, according to the filing.

The organization’s own disciplinary policy sets out a progressive sequence – formal coaching, first written warning, second written warning with a last-chance agreement, then discharge, the complaint alleges. Equitas skipped the second warning and last-chance step entirely.

The claims

The complaint brings nine counts under federal and Ohio law, alleging race discrimination, a racially hostile work environment, disability discrimination, failure to accommodate, and retaliation. The worker is seeking back pay, compensatory and punitive damages, and either reinstatement or front pay.