PHILADELPHIA — A Philadelphia woman is suing a local medical facility, alleging she was retaliated against for exercising her rights to family and medical leave.
Brenda Kelly filed a complaint Feb. 8 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against the University of Pennsylvania Health System, doing business as Penn Medicine, alleging violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act and subsequent retaliation.
According to the complaint, Kelly was employed by the defendant for more than 24 years, from 1991 until 2015, working in a number of roles.
The suit says Kelly began to suffer from health problems, including osteoarthritis, which impacted her ability to work, and she sought FMLA leave in late 2014 through early 2015 due to her condition. Instead, she was punished through demotion, the lawsuit states, and in June 2015, Kelly was terminated for alleged accumulation of progressive discipline.
The plaintiff alleges the termination was due to taking medical leave.
Kelly seeks damages for defendant's illegal actions, lost earnings, bonuses, and benefits, liquidated damages, court costs and attorney' fees, plus a jury trial. She is is represented by attorney Ari R. Karpf of Karpf, Karpf & Cerutti PC in Bensalem.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Case number 2:16-cv-00618