Fired Macomb Comcast Worker Sues Under Persons With Disabilities Act

Macomb County, MI - A 58-year-old Macomb County woman sued the Comcast cable TV company she worked for. She alleges she was fired and discriminated against because of her obsessive-compulsive disorder and her age. A Macomb County resident she recently filed a lawsuit in Macomb County Circuit Court alleging that Comcast Cablevision of Clinton and two employees discriminated against her and fired her from her customer-service position because of her medical condition and age.

The lawsuit does not specify the type of details of the obsessive-compulsive disorder, but it says that the defendants knew about her condition and deliberately harassed her about her condition and retaliated against her.

"The plaintiff was eager to work and was able to do so with appropriate consideration and/or accommodation, as had been the policy and practice of this company with numerous previous employees," the lawsuit says.

Also named in the lawsuit are two Comcast employees, one who the lawsuit says held a "decision-making position," and another, who the lawsuit says held a supervisory position. Both are Macomb County residents.

The plaintiff’s disorder falls within the state Persons With Disabilities Act, according to Harold Core, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, he agreed that someone diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder could fall within the state’s Persons With Disabilities Act. Under state law, a person suffers from a disability that can be subject to bias when one or more mental or physical characteristics "substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of that individual and is unrelated to the individual's ability to perform the duties of a particular job or position, or is unrelated to the individual's qualifications for employment or promotion."

Due to filing the lawsuit, she cannot file a complaint with the Department of Civil Rights, according to Core. The person can only file a lawsuit in state court or file a complaint with his department, by law, he said. A federal lawsuit could be filed only after the accuser exhausts all federal administrative avenues, Core said.

The lawsuit also alleges age bias. The plaintiff, who says she was hired in August 1995, says she was "routinely harassed, abused and discriminated against because of her age."

The plaintiff’s age was a factor that made a difference in defendant's decision to consider, promote, demote, and transfer and to discriminate in day to day decisions concerning The plaintiff’s job and assignments, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit also claims that the Comcast Clinton "followed an announced plan of age discrimination and harassment," discriminating against "older and more senior employees."

The plaintiff complained to superiors about her treatment a number of times but that resulted in an escalation of her mistreatment, the lawsuit says.

The plaintiff was far more qualified than the younger employees, the lawsuit says. "Her work performance was always above satisfactory or above."