Johnson v. Cincy Automall, Inc.

Ohio Ct. App.December 9, 2024No. CA2024-02-033

Plaintiff WinCincy Automall, Inc.

Case Details

Judge(s): M. Powell
Status: Published
Procedural Posture: summary judgment reversed on appeal

Related Laws

OSHAView law details

Claim Types

DiscriminationWrongful TerminationRetaliation

Outcome

Appellate court reversed summary judgment, finding plaintiff stated valid claims for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy based on OSHA complaints and for sex discrimination, determining defendant failed to meet its burden to show absence of material fact regarding similarly situated comparators.

Excerpt

A plaintiff-employee states a valid claim for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy where she claims that she was an at-will employee and was fired for filing a good-faith complaint with her employer and with OSHA concerning COVID-19 hazards and a mice infestation in her workplace. In a disparate treatment sex discrimination case, a defendant-employer fails to satisfy its initial burden for summary judgment to demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact as to the similarly situated element of the plaintiff-employee's prima facie case where the defendant relies on conclusory assertions that the plaintiff has no evidence to prove that she was treated differently than similarly situated male employees. WITH CONCURRING AND DISSENTING OPINION.

What This Ruling Means

**What happened:** A female employee at Cincy Automall claimed she was fired for complaining about workplace safety issues, including COVID-19 hazards and a mice infestation. She had filed complaints both with her employer and with OSHA (the federal workplace safety agency). She also alleged she faced sex discrimination during her employment. The employer argued her claims had no merit and asked the court to dismiss the case without a trial. **What the court decided:** The Ohio appeals court sided with the employee and reversed a lower court's decision to dismiss her case. The court ruled that she had valid claims for wrongful firing based on her safety complaints and for sex discrimination. The court found that even though she was an at-will employee (meaning she could normally be fired for almost any reason), firing her for making good-faith safety complaints violated public policy. The court also determined the employer failed to prove there was no discrimination. **Why this matters for workers:** This ruling reinforces that employees cannot be fired for reporting legitimate workplace safety concerns to OSHA, even if they're at-will employees. It also shows that employers must provide strong evidence when defending against discrimination claims in court.

This summary was generated to explain the ruling in plain English and is not legal advice.

Browse more:Discrimination cases Wrongful Termination cases Retaliation cases

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