THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, January 11, 1997 TAG: 9701110340
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: 29 lines
A divided Virginia Supreme Court ruled Friday that while employers have broad authority to fire workers, they cannot dismiss an employee simply because she becomes pregnant.
The court voted 4-3 to reinstate a lawsuit by Lisa Bailey against Scott-Gallaher Inc. of Roanoke. Bailey lost her job as sales coordinator for the construction and industrial equipment firm in 1994 after missing more than two months of work during and after her pregnancy.
According to the Supreme Court, company president Ronald E. Scott told Bailey she could not return to work because she no longer was dependable because she would have to miss work to care for her child.
Bailey sued, but Roanoke Circuit Judge Clifford R. Weckstein ruled that under the state's ``employment-at-will doctrine,'' employers generally are not required to justify firings.
However, the Supreme Court said the doctrine does not apply when employees are fired based on race or gender discrimination, which is prohibited by the Virginia Human Rights Act. Bailey's case falls within that exception, the court said.
KEYWORDS: VIRGINIA STATE SUPREME COURT PREGNANCY