A nurse has reached a tentative settlement with a Santa Monica hospital where she alleges she was wrongfully fired in 2020 for taking a partial day off to care for her asthmatic son.
Attorneys for plaintiff Nichole Goines filed court papers on Thursday with Santa Monica Superior Court Judge Mark Young notifying him that a “conditional” settlement was reached with Providence St. John’s Health Center and that a request for dismissal will be filed by July 3.
No terms were divulged.
Goines, 49, sued March 17, alleging wrongful termination, retaliation, failure to engage in an interactive process and provide reasonable accommodation and disability-based associational discrimination.
Goines has worked in the medical field for more than 25 years and was hired at the hospital in November 2020 as an LVN, the suit stated. Her son suffers from asthma that requires medical visits and home treatments the plaintiff must administer when his asthma flares up, according to the suit.
On Dec. 9, 2020, Goines was notified that she needed to rush her son to the doctor due to his asthma, so she told her direct supervisor and got approval, the suit stated.
“Ms. Goines planned on returning to work the same day after her son’s doctor’s appointment; however, the doctor explained to her that she would need to stay home to administer his asthma treatments,” the suit stated.
The asthma treatments required by her son had to be given by an adult and no one else was able to do so other than the plaintiff, according to the suit, which further stated that she contacted her boss upon finding out she would not be able to return to work that day.
Goines returned to work the next day, but was fired on Dec. 14, 2020, for having taken part of the day off five days earlier, the suit stated.
When Goines asked for an explanation as to why she was being fired, she was told her boss had considered her a “no show/no call” on the day she took time off, the suit stated.
Goines had available sick time while she was at home with her son, but instead of showing concern for the health of Goines’ son, Providence fired her for taking the time off, the suit alleged.
Goines’ request for reasonable accommodations related to her son’s disability was a “substantial motivating reason” for her firing and she continues to experience lost wages and suffer emotional distress since losing her job, according to the suit.