EMPLOYEE ALLEGED UNPAID WAGES AND EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION
Alleging that he had been underpaid and was a victim of employment discrimination, O.S., an emergency medical technician (EMT), filed suit against Jamaica Hospital with the Suffolk County Supreme Court.
After his case was dismissed by the justice assigned to the matter, O.S. appealed to the Appellate Division, Second Department, which thought that several reversible errors had been made.
First off, on a motion to dismiss, a court is required to give a party’s pleadings a “liberal construction,” accept the allegations as “true,” and is to afford that party “the benefit of every favorable inference.” And, given that standard, the AD2 could find no irregularity with O.S.’s paperwork.
Since he alleged “he was employed by the defendant, that his wages were determined on the basis of time worked, and that he worked hours for which he was not paid,” that along with his claim that the hospital had violated the state’s Wage Theft Prevention Act, was found to have “adequately” stated a claim.
As for his discrimination contention, O.S. alleged that his termination for getting into an accident with the hospital’s vehicle was wrongful because several female EMTs involved in accidents had not been discharged for the same offense. Since state and local laws prohibit employment related discrimination based on an individual’s sex, the AD2 thought O.S. “sufficiently” alleged “an inference of sex discrimination,” and “adequately” stated a claim under the governing discrimination laws [NYCHRL and the NYSHRL].
Given the foregoing, because it thought the hospital’s motion should have been denied, the AD2 reversed the underlying determination and revived the litigation.
Bet Jamaica Hospital found that a bitter pill to swallow ….
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DECISION