A former Texas state trooper is alleging violations of the Family Medical Leave Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, according to the Southeast Texas Record. Edwin K. Lang filed a lawsuit against the Texas Department of Public Safety on March 1, in the Eastern District of Texas.
The lawsuit stems from an incident in which Mr. Lang was hospitalized because of a heart attack. After treatment, Mr. Lang returned to work with the Texas Department of Public Safety, but requested to only do administrative work and not respond to calls on the road. This was so Mr. Lang could heal properly.
Yet Mr. Lang probably didn't expect to be harassed on a daily basis when coming back to work. He alleges that his sergeant with the Texas Department of Public Safety would say that he didn't know what Mr. Lang's purpose was; calling him "useless" and "no good."
The Southeast Texas Record reports that Mr. Lang was removed from task forces, teams and assignments, which caused loss of duties and overtime. He was also denied a promotion. This prompted the Texas man to file a formal charge of disability discrimination within the department and later a charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
The plaintiff was eventually terminated from his position, but an EEOC investigation determined that he did not violate any policy. Mr. Lang and his Texas employment lawyer, Robert J. Wiley, allege in the suit that the Texas Department of Public Safety failed to accommodate his disability, interfered with FMLA leave, retaliated against Mr. Lang because of FMLA leave, and that Mr. Lang was terminated due to a disability.
Related Resources:
- Understanding Family Medical Leave (FindLaw)
- Employee Rights: Disability Discrimination (FindLaw)
- Texas Employment Lawyer Directory (FindLaw)
