A former employee has filed a lawsuit against the City of Pullman for alleged disability discrimination and retaliation after she was terminated in early 2019.
Former city accountant Colleen Lenz filed her complaint on Sept. 10, accusing city officials of abruptly firing her after more than two years on the job because she sought medical leave for intense migraines.
“As a direct and proximate result of plaintiff Lenz’s disability and request to take protected medical leave,” the complaint states, “[the] city took adverse employment actions against her, culminating in her termination.”
Lenz’s lawsuit states city officials claimed she could not perform her job duties and was not qualified for her position. The complaint contends Lenz had about 40 years of accounting experience and had fulfilled her assigned duties throughout her time with the city.
Pullman City Attorney Laura McAloon wrote in an email she could not comment on pending litigation except to say, “The city plans to vigorously defend against the allegations.”
Lenz alleges that supervisors in the city’s Finance department factored her use of medical leave into her annual performance evaluations. The complain argues officials later reprimanded Lenz in 2018 for not completing accounting work that was outside her usual duties.
“Ms. Lenz advised that she could perform these tasks,” the complaint states, “but would need some additional training on how the city wanted them accomplished.”
The lawsuit alleges officials, including City Administrator Adam Lincoln, used the situation to argue Lenz was not qualified for her position and had misrepresented her previous accounting experience. She was fired in January 2019.
“The [city’s] unlawful conduct toward [Lenz] was careless, reckless, unreasonable, negligent and/or intentional,” the complaint argues, “and was the proximate cause of the infliction of severe mental anguish and emotional distress suffered by [Lenz], for which she is entitled to recover damages in an amount to be established at trial.”
The lawsuit outlines five causes of action including discrimination, retaliation, wrongful discharge, infliction of emotional distress and vicarious liability.
Lenz is represented by Spokane attorneys Bob Dunn and Alexandria Drake, who specialize in employment litigation against municipalities. The same attorneys represented former Colfax Police Chief Rick McNannay in his recent termination dispute that resulted in a $435,000 settlement in March.