CHARLESTON – A Kanawha County woman says was terminated from her job at a dog care facility following her pregnancy.
Gabriele Newson filed her complaint in Kanawha Circuit Court against House of Hounds.
According to the complaint, Newson worked for the defendant for about two years. In September 2019, she was 34 weeks pregnant and went on maternity leave. Her child was born the following week.
In December 2019, Newson says she was released to work and told House of Hounds owner Kendra Burton she was ready to accept either full-time or part-time work. By January 2020, she hadn’t heard back from Burton.
On January 8, 2020, Newson says she reached out to Burton again. Burton told her she’d speak with Brannon Carrier, the other owner. Newson says she contacted Burton again on January 17 and February 20.
Burton then asked Newson if she would want to work part time, which is what Newson preferred. Burton then said she’d talk to Carrier again.
Newson says she contacted Burton again about employment. But she says she never was placed back on the schedule, which she says was unlawfully terminating her employment.
Newson claims her termination was based in whole or in part on her pregnancy and that the defendant failed to make accommodations for her pregnancy. In addition, she says the defendant failed to pay her wages and benefits in full by her next regularly scheduled pay period after her discharge and not within the allotted 19 days following her discharge.
She says she has suffered lost wages and benefits as well as indignity, embarrassment, humiliation, annoyance and inconvenience.
Newson seeks compensatory damages, liquidated damages, punitive damages, pre-judgment interest, attorney fees, court costs and other relief.
She is being represented by Mark A. Atkinson and John-Mark Atkinson of Atkinson & Polak in Charleston. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Carrie Webster.
Kanawha Circuit Court case number 21-C-1044
