Kentucky Captain Sues For Gender Discrimination
A Kentucky fire captain has filed suit against her department alleging gender-based discrimination over disciplinary charges that were filed against her last year.
Middletown Fire Protection District Captain Natalie Taylor was suspended last December over comments she made about the department’s leadership at a November 20, 2014 officer’s training session.
According to the complaint, the training session was conducted by Fire Chief Michael Morgan, President of the Kentucky Association of Fire Chiefs, and the Chief of the Union County Emergency Services District. Chief Morgan reportedly invited Captain Taylor to express her opinions, which she did.
She was suspended on December 3, 2014 and charged with making “disparaging, disrespectful and inappropriate remarks about her subordinates, peers, and superior officers of the District while claiming to represent the views of other members and officers of the District.”
Three and one-half months later Captain Taylor prevailed at a disciplinary hearing before the district’s Board of Trustees. The complaint characterized the outcome of the hearing as Captain Taylor being “completely vindicated”, with an award of back pay and benefits making her whole.
After winning at a disciplinary hearing Captain Taylor claims that she was given an unfavorable personnel evaluation, transferred three times in nine months, and otherwise subjected to a “negative environment” on account of her gender.
Here is a copy of the complaint, which was filed November 10, 2015 in Jefferson Circuit Court: Taylor v Middletown FPD
When are the men — especially those down South — going to understand that: (a) women are in the fire service to stay, (b) they have opinions, and the same right to express those opinions as the men, (c) discriminating or retaliating against them for those opinions is illegal and expensive, not to mention just plain wrong, and (d) heavy-handed retaliation as we see here is ALWAYS going to backfire on them?
I really like the California Firefighters “Bill of Rights” even more now.
The Middletown, Ky. FPD looks as if its being run by a Chief officer Staff of “Klingon’s” or simply;
“The Good ol’boy” network
What she did was tell the Chief nothing more than how to better utilize his personnel.
In which its clearly evident that he and his command staff retaliated against her.
I can see why she has made the Gender Discrimination claim, but rather it looks more like Harassment is a better view of it. It looks like one or more of the make fire officers could or would suffer the same fate as she did for proposing some changes.
I see this as a loser for the so called chief and think he and his command staff should be terminated.