Birthday in the office (photo of the office, screenshot)
Surprise party: A Kentucky man won $ 450,000 in a lawsuit – after his co-workers held a birthday party for him in the office against his will. Kevin Burling, 29, worked as a lab technician at Gravity Diagnostics in Covington, Kentucky, and in August 2019, his co-workers decided to organize a surprise party for him in honor of his birthday.
Burling claimed he subsequently suffered a panic attack and unwanted attention, and was soon fired from the company. He later filed a compensation claim against the company, according to legal documents published in the New York Post. “The executives did not understand his reaction to the birthday celebrations,” Burling’s lawyer told local television. “They actually accused him of disabling the joy of his co-workers.”
Burling allegedly asked the office manager not to hold a birthday party for him when he first joined the company. However, the manager then “forgot” his request, and the office celebrations got underway, giving Burling a panic attack. He was forced to flee to his car, where he spent an hour trying to recover. The next day, company executives held a meeting with Burling to ask about his behavior. This incident provoked a second panic attack.
More in-
Burling was fired from Gravity Diagnostics less than a week later, when bosses told him they “fear he’s angry and might become violent.” The lab technician not only was fired, but missed the company’s increase in value that occurred after the outbreak of the corona plague in late 2019, which resulted in significant wage increases for workers.
The fired employee then filed a lawsuit in Canton County, seeking compensation for loss of income. His lawyer said in an interview that there was no chance his client would become violent, saying he was simply “using coping techniques to calm himself down” during his two panic attacks. On Friday, a 12-member jury awarded Burling $ 450,000 and charged the company.
The amount includes $ 120,000 loss of wages and benefits, $ 30,000 in future wages, and $ 300,000 for “past, present and future mental pain and suffering, mental anguish, embarrassment, humiliation and loss of self-esteem.” Gravity Diagnostics told the New York Post that the verdict was “incorrect,” and that they would likely appeal it. A company spokesman further argued that the case should never have gone to trial in the first place because Burling did not reveal that he has a disability (anxiety).
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