Jury to decide whether poor performance or national origin led to termination

A jury should decide whether an employee’s substantial and repeated performance problems resulted in her termination or whether the employer retaliated against her for complaining about harassment, a federal district court in Massachusetts recently held. Under the circumstances presented in the case, many employers may have been confident their decision to discharge was rock solid. Nevertheless, the court declined to dismiss the dispute before trial.

What happened here?

Zofia Kuc is a Polish immigrant. From 2008 to 2016, she was an employee of Smith & Nephew, Inc., a manufacturer and distributor of medical devices and related products. She performed quality-control inspections throughout the company’s manufacturing and packaging processes.

Zuc was terminated in late March 2016 for what the company says was unacceptable performance and what she claims were unlawfully discriminatory reasons, including her national origin and complaints about national origin harassment. Both parties had substantial evidence supporting their positions.

Employee’s evidence

In support of her claims the termination was discriminatory and retaliatory, Kuc provided evidence that for years coworkers had harassed her based on her Polish origin and accent. Examples of the behavior she alleged to have endured included: