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• Sexual Harassment and Termination Case Resolved
  Sexual Harassment Case Against Local Employer and Supervisor Results in a Confidential Settlement
• New Employment Case Filed Against Mastec
  Wrongful termination case filed against Mastec for workers compensation retaliation and disability discrimination.
• Vacation pay must be paid now in Maryland
  Maryland's Department of Labor has revised its opinion about vacation pay in light of the court's decision in Catapult Technology, Ltd, v. Wolf
• Brain surgery on wrong side of brain!
  For the third time this year Rhode Island Hospital has performed brain surgery on the wrong side of a patient’s head.
• Harry Waddell elected President of Employment Lawyers Association
  Harry Waddell assumed the Presidency of the West Virginia Employment Lawyers Association at its Annual Conference at the Woods Resort on October 27, 2007.
• Randy Funkhouser Cleared of All Charges
  Hearing Examiner finds that Racing Commission failed to prove its charges against Randy Funkhouser
• Settlement with Gemcraft Homes, Inc. for defective railing
  Nationwide Insurance pays $21,000 to client to settle claim against Gemcraft Homes
• - Jury Orders Madison Square Garden to Pay for Harassment
• Racial Discrimination Case
  Case Filed Against Quebecor World for Discriminatory Discharge of 17 year Employee
• Former Coach Sues Shepherd University
  David Trail files suit against Shepherd University for defamation and sex discrimination
• Berkeley County Settles with Bunker Hill Woman Attacked by Police Dog
  Berkeley County Commission pays client attacked by police dog.
• Martinsburg Woman Sues City for Negligent Maintenance of Sewer System

Sexual Harassment and Termination Case Resolved

A confidential settlement was reached in May 2008 between Sandra Lechliter and Martins Distributing Company over her claims of sexual harassment and wrongful termination. Ms. Lechliter was hired on April 24, 2006 in a sales and marketing position with the employer.  Ms. Lechliter alleged that shortly after her employment began her immediate supervisor, Mark Hagley, began to sexually harass her.  The harassment was alleged to have included inappropriate verbal advances, crude sexual comments and physical touching. Ms. Lechliter complained repeatedly to management personnel regarding the inappropriate conduct but no action was taken to stop the sexual harassment.  On August 16, 2006, Ms. Lechliter filed a sexual harassment complaint in the Circuit Court of Berkeley County against Mark Hagley and Martins Distributing Company.  Following the filing of her sexual harassment complaint, Ms. Lechliter alleged that the employer began retaliating against her by changing her job duties, writing her up for false reasons, refusing to provide light duty to accommodate her physical restrictions during her pregnancy and eventually, terminating her employment. On July 19, 2007, the Court allowed Ms. Lechliter to amend her complaint to allege a retaliatory discharge in violation of the West Virginia Human Rights Act.  Shortly before trial both Mark Hagley and Martins Distributing Company settled with Ms. Lechliter for a confidential amount subject to a nondisclosure agreement.   

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New Employment Case Filed Against Mastec

    On February 26, 2008 Waddell Law Offices filed a wrongful termination in the Circuit Court of Berkeley County, West Virginia against Mastec Services Company, Inc. and Mastec North America, Inc. on behalf of plaintiff Philip C. Rotruck.  Mr. Rotruck was employed by the defendants as a satellite dish installer for Direct TV.  He was injured while at work and subsequently reguired knee surgery.  Once he was released to return to work by his treating physician, the defendants claimed that he had "abandoned" his job.  After prevailing on his unemployment claim that he was discharged through no fault of his own, the present civil action was filed in Circuit Court alleging that he was discharged in retaliation for filing a workers compensation claim.  The civil suit also alleges that the defendants failed to accommodate his disability by providing temporary medical leave during his knee surgery and recovery.

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Vacation pay must be paid now in Maryland

Maryland's Department of Labor, Licensing & Regulation has Revised Its Opinion About Vacation Pay In Light of Catapult Technology, Ltd. v. Wolf.
In Catapult Technology, Ltd. v. Wolf, a case of first impression, Maryland's Court of Special Appeals explicitly ruled that employees are entitled to receive compensation for accrued vacation pay at the conclusion of their employment, despite a provision in the employee handbook providing for forfeiture of the vacation pay.
Following the Court's ruling, attorney Marc J. Smith contacted Maryland's Department of Labor, Licensing & Regulation and advised them that the information on their web site concerning an employee's right to receive compensation for vacation pay was no longer a correct statement of law in view of the ruling in the Wolf case. At that time, the DLLR website contained the following statement concerning whether unused vacation is payable to the employee at termination:
"The answer to this question depends on the employer's policy, and whether this policy was communicated to the employee in advance. For example, if an employer informs employees at hiring that unused vacation leave will be lost or forfeited when employment ends, then an employee will probably not be able to claim it. On the other hand, where no policy exists or was made known in advance to a terminated employee regarding forfeiture of accrued vacation, the employee may receive the cash value of whatever unused earned leave was left -- provided it was otherwise usable."
After Mr. Smith contacted DLLR to advise them of the holding in Wolf, the Agency modified their view on this issue. Now, in conformity with Wolf, DLLR's position on this issue is as follows:
"When an employee has earned or accrued his or her leave in exchange for work, an employee has a right to be compensated for unused leave upon the termination of his or her employment regardless of the employer's policy or language in the employee handbook."

Read More About Vacation pay must be paid now in Maryland...

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Brain surgery on wrong side of brain!

For the third time this year Rhode Island Hospital has performed brain surgery on the wrong side of a patient’s head. The third incident happened Friday during surgery on an 82-year-old man. Health officials have fined the hospital $50,000 and have ordered the hospital to reevaluate its procedures and surgery plans.

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Harry Waddell elected President of Employment Lawyers Association

Harry Waddell was elected President of the West Virginia Employment Lawyers Association (WVELA) at its Annual Conference held at the Woods Resort on October 27, 2007. WVELA is a state wide organization of employment lawyers providing representation and protection to employees who have been wrongfully terminated, harassed or discriminated against in the workplace. WVELA lawyers also assist employees in wage claims against employers who have failed their employees all the wages that they have lawfully earned. Mr. Waddell will serve as President of the organization for one year following his election at the WVELA Annual Conference on October 27, 2007.

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Randy Funkhouser Cleared of All Charges

Randy Funkhouser was cleared of all charges that he attempted to improperly influence the Racing Commission's decision to disqualify Forest Park, a horse owned by builder Dan Ryan, from a race at the Charles Town Races held on July 4, 2007. As a result of this decision, Mr. Funkhouser's occupational permit has been reinstated and he will permitted to run four of his horses in the West Virginia Breeder's Classic to be held on October 20, 2007. Mr. Funkhouser was represented by Harry Waddell and David Hammer in his sucessful challenge to Racing Commission suspension of his permit.

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Settlement with Gemcraft Homes, Inc. for defective railing

Our client, a Berkeley County school teacher, injured her back when a defectively installed railing gave way and she fell approximately four feet to the ground. She missed several days of work and underwent physical therapy at City Hospital. A claim was made against Gemcraft Homes, Inc. the company responsible for installing the railing. Nationwide Insurance paid our client $21,000 to settle the claim on behalf of its insured.

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- Jury Orders Madison Square Garden to Pay for Harassment

A Manhattan jury has ordered Madison Square Garden and its chairman to pay $11.6 million to a former female executive for creating a hostile work environment and retaliation. The jury’s finding marks the end of lawsuit that accused New York Knicks’ coach Isiah Thomas of making unwanted sexual advances toward the plaintiff and Madison Square Garden of firing her for filing a complaint. The trial judge is expected to rule on an additional $9.6 million in compensatory damages requested by the plaintiff in the coming weeks. Richard Sandomir, The New York Times 10/03/2007

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Racial Discrimination Case

Waddell Law Office has filed a suit on behalf of Lester T. Pigford against Quebecor World for racial discrimination and retaliation. Mr. Pigford had worked 17 years for Quebecor when the company summarily fired him for allegedly "sleeping" on the job when he shut his eyes for a few minutes to get rid of a headache. Lester, who is black, had previously complained of racial harassment by his immediate supervisor. Mr. Pigford's complaint alleges that white employees who were accused of sleeping on the job were not terminated. He is seeking lost income, general compensatory damages and punitive damages against Quebecor for violation of the West Virginia Human Rights Act. The Act protects employees from discriminatory treatment, retaliation and harassment on the basis of race.

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Former Coach Sues Shepherd University

David Trail, former women's softball coach, filed suit against Shepherd University in the Circuit Court of Jefferson County. The lawsuit arises from the University's handling of anonymous allegations of sexual harassment made against Trail in April 2007 and the University's subsequent failure to renew Coach Trail's contract. The complaint alleges that the University failed to follow its own procedures for investigating sexual harassment complaints and falsely reported that Trail had resigned. The Complaint also alleges that the University had openly expressed its desire to replace male coaches with female coaches for its women's sports and that its replacement of Coach Trail with a less qualified female coach violated the West Virginia Human Rights Act.

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Berkeley County Settles with Bunker Hill Woman Attacked by Police Dog

The Berkeley County Commission has paid $50,000 to Annjeana Moore for injuries she sustained on June 30, 2004 when she was severely bitten by a deputy sheriff’s police dog. Ms. Moore was standing in the yard of her residence when the attack occurred. Deputy Thomas A. Young and Deputy Scott Myers of the Berkeley County Sheriff’s office had responded to a call at the Moore residence to investigate an assault on a neighbor by a man who had fled the scene. After unsuccessfully attempting to track the assailant with his police dog, Deputy Young placed the dog in his cruiser with the window partially rolled down. During a verbal altercation between Deputy Young and a group of neighbors displeased with the Sheriff Department’s response to the assault, the police dog jumped through the open window of the cruiser and attacked Ms. Moore inflicting severe bites to her leg and arm. She was transported by ambulance to City Hospital in Martinsburg where she received medical treatment. Deputy Young subsequently filed criminal charges against Ms. Moore claiming she had obstructed justice and committed a battery by kicking him. The charges against her were later dismissed for lack of evidence. After the charges against her were dropped, Ms. Moore filed suit in the Circuit Court of Berkeley County against Deputy Young for failing to properly control his police dog and against Deputies Young and Myers for filing false police reports leading to her arrest. Prior to the trial, the defendants agreed settle her claims paying $50,000 to Ms. Moore. Ms. Moore was represented by Martinsburg attorney, Harry Waddell. “As with all settlements the defendants admit no fault, however the amount of the settlement clearly indicates that the defendants believed that they would not fare well if the facts of this case were presented to a jury,” said Mr. Waddell.

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Martinsburg Woman Sues City for Negligent Maintenance of Sewer System

A 77-year old resident of Martinsburg recently filed a complaint in the Circuit Court of Berkeley County charging the City of Martinsburg with negligence in keeping its sewer system open, in repair and free from nuisance. Plaintiff Dixie Hager is seeking compensatory damages for spine injuries she received when she slipped on her wet basement floor. City sewage had repeatedly backed up in her basement, causing her to fall on November 29, 2005. As a result of her fall, Ms. Hager incurred in excess of $77,000 in medical expenses and incurred additional expenses to clean, repair and modify her home. Ms. Hager's attorney, Harry Waddell, stated that the basis of the claim is the City's breach of its duty to keep its sewer line in adequate repair.

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