Frankstown Twp. sued over virus protocols

Former employee alleges firing was result of questioning COVID-19 safety

A former Frankstown Township employee says in a federal lawsuit that he was terminated last year for expressing concerns over the municipality's lack of safety protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chris Bennett Jr. was a laborer for the township in 2020 and 2021.

He stated in the lawsuit that in March 2021, five township employees tested positive for the virus but were permitted to return to work within three or four days, despite Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommending a 10-day quarantine for those testing positive.

"Mr. Bennett Jr. was distressed by the defendant's lack of safety protocols during the pandemic and his potential exposure to COVID-19 while working," according to his filing in the U.S. District Court in Johnstown.

He expressed his concerns to supervisors George Henry, Kenneth Wertz and James Callahan, and on March 22, 2021, he and two other employees presented doctor's notes indicating they should not return to work for 10 days or until the employees who tested positive no longer had the disease.

Henry, the supervisors chairman, did not approve Bennett taking time off and did not offer Bennett any time off under the federal Family Medical Leave Act.

When Bennett returned to work, he was asked to sign a disciplinary write-up indicating he had taken unexcused absences.

When he would not do that, he was terminated from his job on July 7, 2021.

Firing Bennett violated the Family Medical Leave Act, the U.S. Civil Rights Act, the First Amendment of the Constitution and the Occupational Safety and Health Act, according to the lawsuit filed by Pittsburgh attorney Joshua P. Ward.

Henry on Thursday had no comment about the lawsuit, emphasizing all legal matters are referred to township solicitor Matthew Gieg of Altoona.

The Mirror was unable to contact Geig on Thursday.

Bennett under Pennsylvania law was an "at-will" employee, but his status did not deprive him of certain rights that he still maintained, according to the civil charges in the lawsuit.

For instance, it stated that the doctor's note that was presented to township officials should have been enough to enable him to take time off under the Family Medical Leave Act.

"Mr. Bennett's Jr.'s termination was the ultimate result of the alleged unexcused time off which would have been invalidated by his exercising his FMLA rights," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit contended that under OSHA there is a "clear mandate of public policy by failure to provide a safe workplace."

The OSH Act prohibits reprisals against an employee who speaks out about unsafe work conditions, such as an infection or exposure to COVID-19, the lawsuit continued.

It maintained that the township violated its duty to provide a safe workplace for Bennett, failed to consider his concerns and improperly terminated him for raising concerns about the spread of the virus.

"During this period, the Pennsylvania Department of Health issued a directive for anyone exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 to quarantine for 10 days," it stated.

As to First Amendment rights, the lawsuit stated that Bennett's employment was terminated for his concerns of the township's violation of safety protocol.

"Mr. Bennett Jr., as a citizen, has a right to speak on matters of public concern under the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution," the lawsuit concluded.

Bennett is requesting back pay, front pay and punitive damages.

The Bennett lawsuit pointed out he became concerned about possible exposure to COVID-19 when other employees who tested positive returned to work "coughing at the workplace, and some had an active fever."