Lawsuit says Workforce 2000 Staffing wrongfully denied requests for time off

HUNTINGTON - A former employee is suing Workforce 2000 Staffing Inc. for allegedly wrongfully denying her requests for time off.

Does 1 through 25 have also been named as defendants in the suit.

Rebecca Gardner was employed by Workforce and requested several days off to resolve health problems, including an abscessed tooth and red, burning eyes that had been injured by metal particles from a nearby machine shop, according to a complaint filed Aug. 19 in Cabell Circuit Court.

Gardner claims despite making her requests for medically necessitated leave in a timely manner and in full compliance with the defendant's policies, the defendants summarily denied her requests.

The treatment of Gardner by the defendants was partly due to her mixed ancestry, according to the suit.

Gardner claims she noticed that African-American employees were treated differently than her, including being given days off to address medical concerns.

Walter Ghosten, the president of Workforce 2000, had even asked Gardner which of her parents was black, according to the suit.

Gardner claims she was also told to leave after informing the defendant that she was pregnant and, as a result of requesting medically necessitated leave from work and eventually missing a few days of work to treat her medical conditions, she was terminated for insubordination.

The defendants violated the West Virginia Wage Payment and Collection Act and the West Virginia Human Rights Act, according to the suit.

Gardner is seeking compensatory and punitive damages with pre-judgment interest. She is being represented by J. Patrick L. Stephens of Underwood Law Offices.

The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge David M. Pancake.

Cabell Circuit Court case number: 13-C-596