In a compelling legal battle, an Illinois resident has taken a significant step against his former employer, alleging violations of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Sergey Saenko filed a complaint on August 6, 2024, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, accusing Supernova Lending, LLC of both interference with his FMLA rights and retaliatory termination.
According to the complaint, Saenko was employed as a Senior Enterprise Operations Engineer Manager at Supernova Lending from October 17, 2022, until his termination on July 22, 2024. The plaintiff asserts that he was consistently meeting or exceeding performance standards during his tenure. However, in mid-July 2024, Saenko experienced severe stomach issues and took paid sick leave from July 15 to July 19. On July 21, he provided his employer with a doctor's note and inquired about FMLA options as recommended by his physician.
The doctor’s note indicated that Saenko could work remotely starting July 22 and return to the office by July 29. Despite this medical documentation and request for FMLA information, Saenko was terminated on July 22 under the pretext of poor performance. The plaintiff contends that this reason is unfounded given his satisfactory performance evaluations over the past two years.
Saenko alleges that Supernova Lending's actions constitute unlawful interference with his FMLA rights and retaliation for requesting medical leave. He argues that his termination one day after seeking FMLA information demonstrates clear retaliation. "Defendant interfered with Plaintiff's FMLA rights by terminating his employment in response to his request for FMLA," states the complaint.
The lawsuit details two counts against Supernova Lending: violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act through unlawful denial of FMLA rights (interference) and retaliation. Saenko claims that despite being eligible for FMLA leave in 2023 and providing proper notice regarding his medical condition, Supernova Lending failed to inform him of his eligibility status or designate the requested leave as FMLA leave. This failure allegedly resulted in unlawful termination instead of granting him the protected leave.
As a result of these alleged violations, Saenko seeks various forms of relief from the court. These include back pay with interest, front pay, loss of benefits compensation, compensatory and punitive damages, reasonable attorneys' fees and costs, pre-judgment interest if applicable, and any other relief deemed just by the court.
Representing Sergey Saenko is attorney Chad W. Eisenback from Sulaiman Law Group Ltd.
The Case ID is: 1:24-cv-06860.