Lawsuit Against Alliance HealthCare Services Tests the Limits of COVID-Related Employment Litigation
Plaintiffs counsel Lawrence Pearson believes his representation of Kristen Paltz in her federal wrongful-termination lawsuit against Alliance HealthCare Services Inc. is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to some employers using COVID-19 to get rid of employees who have complained about management.
“There is a definite pattern in terminations and layoffs of employees who are seen as troublesome because they have made complaints against their employer. They are often weeded out in these layoffs,” said Pearson, a partner with Wigdor in New York City.
Pearson continued: “Managers sense an opportunity, and think they have cover to terminate people because of COVID. We’ve seen this trend during other economic downturns too. Our founding partner, Douglas Wigdor, termed the phrase ‘recessionary discrimination’ to describe this sort of practice.”
Paltz, an account executive and a 24-year employee of the company, which is a national provider of outsourced radiology and oncology services, was terminated in early April. The lawsuit said Paltz was let go along with 37 others out of the company’s 2,700 workers nationwide because of the health pandemic.
