La-Z-Boy Accused Of Violating Rights Under Family And Medical Leave Act

A woman filed a $1 million plus lawsuit against La-z-Boy, Inc., last week in U. S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri.

Lori Ann Adams claims La-Z-Boy officials violated her rights under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act by firing her on Sept. 2, 2004. She says she suffered more than $300,000 in actual damages for lost wages, benefits, “diminished future earning capacity, lost career and promotion opportunities, job search expenses, and general non-monetary damages in the form of severe emotional and mental distress and anguish, pain and suffering, humiliation, inconvenience, embarrassment, loss of sleep, decreased self-esteem, anxiety and depression, loss of enjoyment of life.”

Ms. Adams is also asking for $1 million in punitive damages.

Ms. Adams, who had been working for La-Z-Boy since 2000 was approved for a Family and Medical Leave Act leave on Aug. 25, 2004, after she suffered an anxiety attack following “an incident at work,” according to the lawsuit, which indicated she has a history of “chronic depression and anxiety attacks.”
When she returned, the petition said, she was fired “for false and pretextual reasons, allegedly for refusing to perform work she was instructed to do and for falsifying the reason she needed to leave.”

Basically, Ms. Adams was accused of being a La-Z-Gal.