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RENO, Nev.—The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the Nevada Division of Forestry, charging it fired a worker soon after it discovered she was pregnant, the department said Friday.
The DOJ said in a statement that the suit, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Reno, Nev., alleges that the former dispatcher, Tawnya Meyer, was successfully performing her job and there were no complaints about her work until she announced her pregnancy.
The lawsuit, which charges the division with violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, also states the department did not document any work-related problems with Ms. Meyer’s performance before her termination, nor did it follow its own policies regarding terminations.
It seeks a court order that would require the NDF to develop and implement policies that would prevent its employees from being subjected to discrimination based on sex, as well as monetary relief for Ms. Meyer to compensate her for damages sustained as a result of the alleged discrimination.
Thomas E. Perez, assistant attorney general for the DOJ’s civil rights division, said in a statement, “No woman should have to make a choice between having a job and having family. Federal law requires employers to main a workplace free of such discrimination.”
A NDF spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.