A Colorado dental assistant who was fired after she complained about not being allowed to take lunch or rest breaks has won her wrongful termination case.
Debbie Bonidy sued her employer, James Harding, D.D.S., an Avon, CO, dentist, after she complained about an office policy forbidding employees from leaving the office except to use the restroom.
After receiving a letter from Bonidy's attorney informing him he was violating state labor laws, Dr. Harding accused her of stealing $240 from his office and fired her in August 2004. A trial court subsequently ruled that Bonidy had been wrongly fired and that Dr. Harding's accusation was "retaliatory and vindictive conduct."
A Colorado appellate court last month upheld the wrongful termination decision and also awarded Bonidy $120,000 in back pay, plus interest. The appellate court also directed the trial court to consider awarding Bonidy another $120,000 in punitive damages.
Her attorney, Sandy Karp of Glenwood Springs, CO, told DrBicuspid.com, "The ruling of the court of appeal is consistent with the trend in Colorado that employees that stand up against illegal conduct can't be fired for doing that."
Neither Dr. Harding nor his attorney returned calls for comment.
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