Eric C. Ong has filed a civil action complaint against Allstar Therapies, Inc. and Pleasant Valley Manor, Inc., alleging violations of multiple laws including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Pennsylvania Whistleblower Act (PWA), the Older Adults Protective Services Act (OAPSA), and Pennsylvania common law. The complaint was filed on May 15, 2024, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
The plaintiff, Eric C. Ong, claims that he faced severe and pervasive sexual harassment from his supervisor, Dr. Wendy Echeverria, Director of Rehabilitation at Allstar Therapies. Ong alleges that Echeverria made numerous inappropriate advances towards him starting from April 2020 when he began working at Pleasant Valley Manor’s nursing home facility in Stroudsburg, PA. According to Ong, Echeverria's behavior included making unwelcomed comments about her physical appearance and her daughter’s looks, touching him inappropriately despite his objections, and falsely claiming to colleagues that they were romantically involved.
Ong asserts that when he rejected these advances, Echeverria retaliated by creating a hostile work environment—publicly criticizing him for minor mistakes and denying him vacation time while allowing other employees similar privileges. The situation escalated when Echeverria demanded that Ong move his desk next to hers in September 2023; upon his refusal, she threatened termination.
In addition to sexual harassment claims under Title VII, Ong also reported what he believed were unsafe practices encouraged by management at both Allstar Therapies and Pleasant Valley Manor. He contends that he was pressured to prematurely release elderly patients to walk with nursing staff or aides before they were medically cleared to do so—a practice intended to improve the facility’s CMS star rating but which posed significant risks to patient safety.
Ong claims that his attempts to report these concerns internally were met with hostility and ultimately led to his termination on November 21, 2023. He had also reached out to external authorities—the Pennsylvania Department of Aging and the Pennsylvania Department of Health—just one day prior to being fired.
The lawsuit seeks various forms of relief including back pay, front pay, compensatory damages for emotional distress and humiliation, punitive damages for willful misconduct by the defendants, as well as attorney's fees and costs associated with bringing this action. Ong is represented by Ari R. Karpf from Karpf, Karpf & Cerutti P.C., while the case has been assigned Case ID: 3:24-cv-00808-KM.