A former school district employee has filed a lawsuit alleging severe discrimination and retaliation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Stella Weisfus, through her attorney Alexander J. Taylor of Sulaiman Law Group, lodged the complaint against Elwood Community Consolidated School District 203 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on September 19, 2024.
The case centers around Weisfus's allegations that her employer failed to accommodate her disability, Chronic Idiopathic Neutropenia, which compromises her immune system. Hired as a District Secretary in 2012, Weisfus's duties included administrative support and managing communications. In October 2020, she requested reasonable accommodations due to her condition, including relocation to an unused office and permission to work remotely during a COVID-19 outbreak. Despite these requests being reasonable and necessary for her health, Weisfus claims the school district initially denied her disability and delayed accommodations. When they did provide an office change, they manipulated conditions by keeping it at low temperatures and ultimately refused remote work requests.
Weisfus's initial charge of discrimination was filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in March 2020. Despite this action, she faced ongoing retaliation from her supervisor Cathy Pezanosky, who altered job duties and excluded her from essential notifications. The school district continued its alleged failures by not adequately cleaning Weisfus’s workspace or compensating for all days worked from home.
Following a settlement related to these issues, Pezanosky allegedly intensified retaliation efforts by falsely accusing Weisfus of withholding doctor’s notes and giving negative performance reviews that referenced her EEOC filing. On June 8, 2021, Weisfus was suspended without explanation and subsequently terminated on July 8, 2021. She contends this termination was based on disability discrimination and retaliation for engaging in protected activities under the ADA.
Weisfus is seeking various forms of relief from the court including back pay with interest, front pay, compensatory and punitive damages, loss of benefits compensation, attorneys' fees and costs, pre-judgment interest if applicable, and any other relief deemed just by the court.
Representing Weisfus is Alexander J. Taylor from Sulaiman Law Group Ltd., while details about the defendant's legal representation are not provided in the document. The case is identified as Case No: 1:24-cv-08640.