Employee sues employer over termination for request to work remotely where employee was under a covid-19 shelter in place order.
The former general counsel of a real estate development company, a non-essential business, located near Dallas, Texas filed a lawsuit when she was fired when she asked to work remotely while under a COVID-19 shelter in place order.
The employee lives in Dallas and the business is in another county. At the time the employee was terminated, Dallas was under a shelter in place order. The complaint alleges that the employer refused to allow the employee to work from home even though a shelter in place order was issued for the county in which the employee lives and the order prohibited travel to work.
The employee’s complaint indicates that she was ready willing and able to work from home and that she emailed her employer asking him to “stop trying to require me (and other Dallas County residents and residents of other counties with the same orders) under the threat of termination to come to the office in violation of various government orders/laws that will subject me to criminal penalties.”
The employer terminated the employee shortly after receiving the email.
In her complaint, the employee is seeking damages for lost wages, benefits, future earnings, emotional distress and punitive damages.