The Woodlands Psychiatry and Counseling Company, a hospital in Conroe, Texas, violated federal law when it fired an employee for making a discrimination charge to the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). According to the EEOC’s suit, the hospital fired a chemical dependency counselor after it learned she had filed a discrimination charge with the EEOC. The counselor filed the charge and the EEOC sent a formal notice to the hospital’s owner, Dr. Emaid Mikhail Bishai, that same day. That evening, Bishai texted the employee and barred her from returning to work, stating, “I received your case of discrimination email now,” and told her she would be charged with criminal trespass if she returned to the premises. The company later admitted to the EEOC that it had to fire her because it could not “afford to have a current employee that is in active discrimination charges against the company for liability reasons.” Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for complaining about discrimination. The federal agency is seeking a permanent injunction prohibiting The Woodlands Psychiatry and Counseling Company from engaging in any future retaliation. The EEOC also seeks back pay with pre-judgment interest, compensatory and punitive damages for the discharged employee, and other relief.
