Woman fired for heavy periods. ACLU appealing her dismissed suit.

[politicat]

https://www.themarysue.com/woman-fired-period-aclu/

Alisha Coleman worked as a 911 call taker for Bobby Dodd Institute , a job training and employment organization for people with disabilities. She had that job for nearly a decade before she was let go for getting her period at work. Most women know the embarrassment of having your period sneak up on you unexpectedly and having to figure out a way to deal with stained clothing at work or school or some other public place. But to be fired for it is as baffling as it is infuriating.

Georgia.

She's in perimenopause, which causes unpredictable and often much heavier periods. For those not equipped or feeling an attack of just-world or victim blaming coming on, here's some pointers:

1. No, you can't "hold" it.
2. No, you can't control it when it sneaks up.
3. Yes, it can go gusher unexpectedly.
4. No, you don't always have any warning.
5. No, always wearing a pad is not an option. That's likely to cause dermatitis and/or bacterial infections.
6. No, always wearing a tampon is not an option. See above, plus yeast infections.
7. Tampons do leak.
8. Cups can leak, too, especially on a very long shift when the call gods are being shitty.
9. It's already pretty damn embarrassing to be caught leaking. Getting disciplinary action for doing your job -- as a dispatcher, where you can't just log off in the middle of an emergency -- is cruel and absolutely misogynistic.

She was written up and dismissed for "soiling company property" and "not maintaining a neat appearance." I wonder how many desks have crumbs, how many people have gotten stanky after pulling a stressful 12 hour shift, how many people have gotten a norovirus and barfed in their trash cans.

And to the goddam federal judge who dismissed her suit? I hope he spends the rest of his days with a colostomy bag.

[raging moderate]

1. I once had a tampon shoot out of me, flooding my bed.

Oh, how glad I am to be past menopause. This poor woman should have the support of every woman.

[skylucy]

8. I'm with you, raging mod. This case brought back some horrifying memories of menopause for me too!!

I hope she kicks the company's ass in court.

[skylucy]

2. I was reading about this the other day. I made the mistake of reading the "comments" after the

article. Unbelievable how many people are totally ignorant about periods and perimenopause. I hope Ms. Coleman wins her case. And shame on the jerk of a federal judge who dismissed her suit.

[RKP5637]

7. A good portion of the US is filled with ignorant idiots. What a jerk the federal judge is. n/t

[RKP5637]

3. Georgia, maybe that explains some of it. I can't believe this suit was dismissed. n/t

[Eliot Rosewater]

51. The judge is getting company, soon ALL courts all over the country will ALL Be

rightwing sycophants doing damage like you will not fucking believe.

And why?

I cant say.

[RKP5637]

53. A lot of people don't bother to vote for local judges, they just skip it. So, all the RW needs to

do is communicate to all to vote for a RW judge and they get in. This is in areas that vote in local judges. It's hard to research judges. I've always done it, but it's very time consuming.

[Eliot Rosewater]

54. And all judicial appts from now on will be idiot rightwing religious sycophant

assholes.

The damage that will be done will be too much, it will overwhelm everything. Cant come back from it, there will be civil war before that.

[tymorial]

4. This is outrageous.

I generally don't go for the wishing pain and suffering but on this one I am right there with you. Colostomy bag. Definitely.

[iluvtennis]

14. +++ Agree, absolutely ridiculous. Hope the ACLU wins a big settlement for her.

[Luz]

43. I'd be satisfied with a good long period with killer cramps

unexpectedly of course.

[Maraya1969]

61. He would probably call 911 if he had a case of bad cramps. Men cannot comprehend

how bad the pain can be.

[procon]

5. Its 2017 and we might as well be banishing menstruating women to

the Isolation Hut as they are cursed and unclean. The War On Women continues.

[JimGinPA]

6. I Hope She Gets Rich Over This Treatment

[madaboutharry]

9. This happened because we live in a culture with no empathy.

No one cares about anyone anymore. We live in a country with a culture of selfishness. We can't look at another person and feel for them or want to help them.

I know that not everyone is like that. Probably the people reading this would have empathy for this woman and if she worked for us we would find a way to help her and accomadate her and never have a thought of firing her.

I don't know. I am feeling so down about America right now and this story is just another example of how messed up this place has become.

[Major Nikon]

25. The reality is that people can be and are dismissed for all sorts of medical conditions

Unless you are covered by the ADA or other disability legislation, you are shit-out-of-luck and many conditions and various situations just aren't included.

Since most people aren't covered by a union contract, they are very much at the mercy of their employer unless they are covered by Title VII or other state laws which vary depending on where you live.

[Ms. Toad]

37. For medical conditions, most are covered by the FMLA.

Any business with 50 or more employees is generally prohibited from firing you for taking time off for personal or family medical matters.

(You may not get paid for the time off, but your job is generally protected.)

[Major Nikon]

39. True, but that's for requesting time off

So if you have some sort of acute condition or birth that requires you to take time off, you won't lose your job under certain conditions, but many people have chronic conditions that limit their ability to work or to perform certain functions, but aren't covered by disability laws because of the hoops you have to jump through to qualify. In many of those situations it wouldn't be all that difficult for the employer to accommodate the employee, but it often becomes a business decision on whether or not to retain them and empathy is the first thing to go. Even if they do qualify, many employees either don't know what their rights are under Title VII, or they are afraid to exercise them for fear of retribution.

[Ms. Toad]

41. If you have condition that impairs your ability

To perform your job, and you could perform it with reasonable accommodations, all but the smallest employers must accommodate you - so it's not a business decision; it's the law.

You are correct that many people are unaware of their rights, which lets far too many employees get away with ignoring the law.

[Major Nikon]

45. True, but that right is far from absolute

The subject of the OP is a good example and probably wouldn't qualify for a reasonable accommodation if one had been requested and the employer challenged it. There's a number of conditions that have to be met and all sorts of ways employers can game those rules in their favor. Although the EEOC system is designed to be generally employee friendly and may be utilized without a lawyer, they are still bound by the laws which fall under Title VII. A company of any significant size is going to have one or more lawyers on their HR staff that specialize in Title VII, while most employees aren't going to be able to afford one. Because of rules that limit compensation, few lawyers are going to take any case on contingency unless it's a slam dunk.

[Ms. Toad]

58. It is a temporary disability that interferes with her abilty to do her job

It can easily be accommodated. The complaint seemed to be that she soiled her chair - not that she was unable to perform essential job functions. Provide a chair that can easily be cleaned.

Her ability to perform the essential functions of the job would be a bit harder to overcome, since (if I recall correctly) she was doing some sort of dispatch function. Needing to frequently be away from your phone for unpredictable amounts of time would be hard to accommodate. Headsets might do the trick - but create the challenge that they transmit whatever sounds are nearby - and bathroom sounds would not mix well with headseats.

But - as I noted - inability to perform her essential functions was not the basis of the firing, as I understood the scenario. It was soiling the chair.

[mcar]

10. I was in a similar situation

Uterine fibroids, bleeding for 40+ days straight at times. I kept a change of clothes in the car and at work.

I could stand up from a chair and flood through a tampon, heavy pad and two pairs of panties in a second.

The "treatment" of birth control pills threw me into a debilitating insomnia phase, one I've never truly recovered from - 20 years later.

I ended up quitting my job and started a home based freelance writing business. We took a huge financial hit but I was there for my school aged kids and could take naps in order to function.

The heavy bleeding eased off as I got older. Had my ovaries removed 4 years ago. Blessed relief.

Anyone who has lived through this understands it is a serious medical condition.

[applegrove]

12. I had many gushing moments as a teen, young adult. Thankfully it regulated

itself when I got older. Sometimes i had to change every hour for a few hours in a row.

[mcar]

13. It's a pretty awful experience

I was afraid to go out and so exhausted I could barely function.

But you know, we wimminz should have to pay more for our icky health needs.

[MoonchildCA]

36. Same here...

...only mine never stopped growing. Long story...Thanks, Obamacare. (Literally saved my life!)
Early on though, before I was "showing," I was hemorrhaging. It was so bad, sometimes I couldn't leave the restroom.

[Ms. Toad]

38. Ditto - and I couldn't get my doctors to believe it was serious.

I had to figure out how to prove that I was losing 2 quarts of blood over about 4 days every month before they would take me seriously. I'd last all of 5 minutes (barely enough time to return to my desk before turning around to go back for a chante), and I slept in adult diapers- in addition to heavy duty tampons and often an extra pad inserted. The adult diapers at least allowed me to avoid waking up in a panic several times a night, fearing I'd ruined the bed.

Fortunately, the little tennis-ball-sized critter was able to be surgically removed in an outpatient surgery once I found the right doctor. I could have gone back to work the same day, aside from the after-effects of anesthesia. Coming up on 20 years since the surgery this spring. Past menopause & still have all my body parts - despite the idiot doctors who wanted to remove them because, after all, I was done using them. . .

[mcar]

44. That's what they said to me too

You're not using your uterus anymore so why hang onto it (I was 40). I sought other options and had a procedure that cutnoff the blood supply to the biggest fibroid. It didn't solve the problem but it helped.

[CTyankee]

56. I think I'd have the hysterectomy immeditely. At age 40 my childbearing days were

well behind me. Had 3 kids and that was enough...

[mcar]

62. I had a real inkling my menopause experience

would not be good. I was correct. Had my ovaries removed at 54. 4 years later, I'm still miserable.

[Ms. Toad]

60. That's the procedure I was headed for -

but the only doctor who performed that procedure, within a reasonable driving distance, actually took a look (which none of the other doctors had done - including the one who had done a blind D&C). What she saw was a single tennis-ball sized fibroid that could easily be taken out through the cervix. A much better option for a fibroid in the location mine was in. (Submucosal, hanging inside the uterus by a very small stem.

[mainer]

11. Perimenopause can be hell. Gushers are unpredictable

Do they fire men with enlarged prostates who have to suddenly run to the restroom? I doubt it.

[meow2u3]

29. Maybe those men ought to be fired for having enlarged prostates

just to teach ignorant men a lesson!

[grantcart]

15. Like the sign said, "I can't believe we are still protesting this shit after all these years

[kimbutgar]

16. I remember those days

The bleeding was so horrible. The cramps weren't as bad but the achiness and headaches were bad. I'm glad I am in Menopause but hate the hot flashes and night sweats.

[Solly Mack]

17. K&R

May she win and win big.

[BigmanPigman]

18. This is another example of the shit women have to go through

for most of their lives. The physical, emotional and mental issues related to our bodies is NOT a choice. Yet we are treated like crap by society on so many levels and in so many ways.

Having an ALL MALE committee writing the Senate health care bill is another example of how many men want to control us and stay in power.

I could go on and on but you all know this already.

[catbyte]

19. In addition to #6, Toxic Shock Syndrome, a fatal condition, is also a real hazard

if you leave tampons in for too long.

That judge is a real asshole. I agree completely about the colostomy bag. I've always wished that men could get 6 months of menstrual periods--1 month isn't enough to get the whole picture of what we go through. I'll just bet they'd be curled up in the fetal position on the couch clutching a hot water bottle for at least 3 days out of the month, sobbing.

[Beringia]

20. No understanding of the woman's problem

When I first got cramps when I starting to menstruate, they were pretty bad. My mother gave me the advice to go out and jump rope, which made them worse.

[Ilsa]

21. Side effect: bleeding to death.

I've been lucky, but women who have chronic conditions related to perimenopause have my sympathy. I hope the idiot judge ends up with a colostomy bag, too.

A friend had been frequently flooding for months, and her husband was throwing her a birthday party. She told the doctor she would come in for a hysterectomy the day after her party. The dr told no way - she would probably bleed to death if the didn't get the surgery within a couple of days.

[cstanleytech]

22. I hope she takes them to the

cleaners if they fired her for that as it's not something she can turn on or off like a damn faucet.

[Lithos]

23. Wow, the insensitivity here

Perimenopause is a medical condition.

Don't think this attributable to Georgia, but to an old man who has absolutely no clue sitting on the bench.

[politicat]

31. I added the state because it wasn't in the excerpt.

The federal 11th is a big district.

[Warren DeMontague]

24. Fired from an "employment organization for people with disabilities"?

You would think they'd know better.

[Warpy]

26. I'd love to know what the hell she was expected to do about it

Looks like it's their fault for not allowing her a 5 minute bathroom break.

[Orrex]

27. This is so fucking stupid that I don't even have a snarky comment about it

Other than to point out that men can be fucking idiots.

[Lordquinton]

28. People go to work with the flu

and broken limbs, and they get all manner of accolades for persevering. Apparently "feminine issues" don't count for being a real trooper.

[Starry Messenger]

30. The struggle is real.

I think I just started this. TMI, but "fire hose" keeps coming to mind these days. There is no warning and no controlling it.

[obamanut2012]

46. IM me about it later

Because, it sucks while it lasts.

[Me.]

32. This Is Because Men Are Terrified By Periods & It's Misogyny At Its Worst

They are horrified by blood coming out of a body. Look how that creepy 45 behaved. This is why women used to be forced out of homes whenever it was their time. Isn't it time for the people in this country to be adult about bodies and how they function?

[Skittles]

40. do you know what I think REALLY freaks out men?

the fact that deep down they know NOTHING they do is more impressive than giving birth, so everything associated with female reproductive health is belittled

[Me.]

47. Oh You Are So Right

Their bodies cannot create life...the biggest, most important thing in the world

[Major Nikon]

57. I can pee standing up

Just sayin'

[Skittles]

59. newsflash: ANYONE can pee standing up

can they piss up a rope? maybe not so much

[Major Nikon]

63. I can also write my name in the snow

[Skittles]

65. now you're getting the hang of it

although it still doesn't beat childbirth

[Major Nikon]

66. Depends on how big of a calligraphy fan you are

[smirkymonkey]

33. What an outrage!

This is straight up misogyny. I hope this judge and the employer get their asses handed to them.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

34. Well, that's not misogynistic at all.

Infuriating!

[peggysue2]

35. I can confirm this

Same thing happened to me--not the firing but the same problematic bleeding during peri-menopause. It took two D&C's to bring the bleeding under control and it was . . . mortifying. The idea that anyone thinks you can control this or hold it??? How thoroughly stupid. And no, this is not the kind of bleeding you can easily contain without constant runs to the bathroom. As in every 90 minutes.

So, I empathize with this woman. Been there, done that. Her employer on the other hand? They should be ashamed of themselves.

[burrowowl]

42. K&R!!!!!!!!!!!

I agree: "And to the goddam federal judge who dismissed her suit? I hope he spends the rest of his days with a colostomy bag."
What a complete ignoramus!

[usaf-vet]

48. VP Pence heard rumors that is was a topic on DU this morning.

he is now hiding in a closet with the door locked. Whimpering can be heard. Occasionally he will ask if the armed guard are still there.

He really really is phobic about women and women stuff.

[politicat]

49. Oh, we've barely started. We can keep him in there a looooong time.

[MrPurple]

50. She'd been an employee there for 10 years

and they're going to fire her for experiencing a medical issue that she didn't have before? It's just insanely ignorant and lacking in compassion for someone who has been a part of your team for 10 years.

[niyad]

52. the war on women continues apace. goddess forfend that a woman should experience

a natural biological function in (shhhhhhh) public!!

as for that asshole judge. colostomy bag should be only the start. I was thinking flesh-eating virus.

[Initech]

55. Sounds like the bosses are total assholes.

[milestogo]

64. And yet if she had tried to apply for disability on the basis of her heavy periods, she probably

would not have qualified.

[politicat]

67. Yep.

No tax on being female-bodied, no systemic misogyny, no gynophobia here. No way, no how.