CHARLESTON – A Kanawha County woman claims she was fired by a Pizza Hut franchisee after she refused to wear a hat because of migraines.
Elizabeth Watkins filed her complaint in Kanawha Circuit Court against Ampex Brands of Pizza of West Virginia, which operates the Pizza Hut restaurant in Cross Lanes.
According to the complaint, Watkins was an employee of the restaurant. She says her duties included working in the store and making deliveries. Part of the required uniform was a hat.
Because Watkins suffers from migraine headaches and has for an extended period of time, she has a prescription for medication. She also says wearing a hat or other headgear can trigger or make the headaches worse.
When she was told she had to wear a hat, Watkins says she told her supervisor of her condition and provided a note from a doctor confirming she shouldn’t have to wear a hat. The supervisor then told her she could wear a toboggan or knit ski hat instead, but Watkins said that also is tight and caused similar issues.
When Watkins failed to wear a hat or knit ski hat, she was first sent home from work by her supervisor. Then, she says she was given fewer hours on the schedule. Finally, she says she was fired on February 19, 2022.
“Defendant terminated plaintiff’s employment based solely because of her refusal to wear a hat or the toboggan/knit ski hat as directed by her supervisor,” the complaint states.
Watkins accuses the defendant of violating the West Virginia Human Rights Act and for failing to reasonable accommodate her disability.
She says she has suffered past and future lost wages and fringe benefits, annoyance, inconvenience, embarrassment, humiliation, emotional distress and expenses. She seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages and attorney fees. She also seeks full reinstatement to the job.
In its answer, the defendant seeks to have the case dismissed. It denies most of the allegations in the complaint but says Watkins was not given fewer hours in retaliation for not wearing a hat. It also says she was terminated when she refused to wear a hat while making deliveries and refusing to accept an in-store job that didn’t require her wearing a hat.
Watkins is being represented by J. David Fenwick of Goodwin & Goodwin in Charleston. The defendant is being represented by John R. Merinar Jr. and Bonnie Thomas of Steptoe & Johnson in Bridgeport. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Tera Salango.
Kanawha Circuit Court case number 22-C-293