Yesterday, a federal jury in Spartanburg, South Carolina found that Spartanburg Community College (SCC) had unlawfully retaliated against Dr. Chipley Bennett and violated his FMLA rights after Dr. Bennett used protected FMLA leave to take care of his 93 year old father for two days after surgery. The jury awarded damages to Dr. Bennett in the amount of $308,000. [See Jury Verdict Form 4-23-26 here.] Congratulations to the plaintiff’s attorney, Jeff Dunlaevy, on this important victory!
This is the latest jury verdict in the Upstate of South Carolina for an employment law claim, following the landmark $5.1 million verdict another jury recently awarded against BMW for national origin discrimination in February. [Read about that case here: Greenville Jury Issues a $5.1 Million Verdict Against BMW for National Origin Discrimination] As an FMLA retaliation lawyer in South Carolina, I’m always heartened to see juries of our peers recognize the importance of workplace rights in our state.
But what was the nature of the claim and what happens next?
What Are Your FMLA Rights in South Carolina?
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides eligible employees with up to 12 weeks per year of protected leave to themselves or to care for a close family member, including parents. To be eligible, the employee must have worked there for at least one year, worked more than 1,250 hours in that year, and work at a location that has at least 50 employees within a 75 mile radius. [Find out more about FMLA leave options here: Family and Medical Leave Act Violations]
An employee seeking FMLA leave is required to provide notice of the upcoming medical leave at least 30 days in advance, or if an emergency, then as soon as practicable. {Read More: Family and Medical Leave Act for South Carolina Employees]
Under the FMLA, the employer is prohibited from interfering with an employee’s FMLA rights, as well as prohibited from retaliating against an employee for requesting or using FMLA leave. If an employer violates an employee’s FMLA rights, then the employee can file a lawsuit and seek damages, including lost wages and benefits, attorney’s fees and costs, and liquidated damages (doubling the lost wages). [Read more: Retaliation for FMLA Leave in South Carolina]
How Did Spartanburg Community College Violate the Professor’s FMLA Rights?
Dr. Bennett had been employed with Spartanburg Community College (SCC) for 24 years as a biology professor. In February 2023, he learned that his father would need emergency surgery the following week in Florida, and he made plans to travel down there the next week. He also arranged for a student intern to proctor his classes while he was gone. Dr. Bennett wound up leaving earlier than expected because a family was not available last minute to take his father to the hospital. He did not notify SCC formally about the leave before his leave, although he had told his boss he would be missing an evening event one of those nights.
SCC learned of his two day leave the first day that Dr. Bennett was absent. Once Dr. Bennett heard from his proctor about SCC’s inquiries, he notified his supervisor that he’d not been able to give prior notice due to the emergency nature of his father’s surgery. Dr. Bennett then made a formal request for FMLA leave through HR. SCC initially approved his request and paid him for those two days.
However, SCC decided to follow up by launching an investigation into Dr. Bennett’s leave request. After an investigation, SCC decided that Dr. Bennett had failed to provide proper notice to the college and should therefore be terminated, even though Dr. Bennett’s leave had already been approved. He was not fired until some months later after returning from leave.
Ultimately, a jury did not buy SCC’s proffered argument that Dr. Bennett had been fired because he didn’t follow the policy. Dr. Bennett had told his supervisor before he left that he would miss an event due to the surgery, he had told the proctor, and he had made attempts to tell other local managers about the leave. He also promptly applied for leave on the first day he was gone, which was approved without issue. The jury believed, based on its verdict, that SCC had deliberately retaliated against Dr. Bennett for taking FMLA leave in the first place.
What South Carolina Employees Should Be Aware Of
These types of verdicts are important reminders to employers in South Carolina that the FMLA rights of employees are protected for a reason, and trampling on those rights will come at a high cost. In addition to the $308,000 in lost wages and benefits, the Court will also have to decide whether to liquidate (double) that amount to a total of $616,000, as well as how much to award to Dr. Bennett’s lawyer in terms of attorney’s fees. Those fees will likely be in hundreds of thousands of dollars. This doesn’t even account for the amount of money that SCC has had to pay its lawyers to defend the claims.
My hope would be that SCC—and other employers in South Carolina paying attention—would take this lesson to heart. Rather than spending time harassing employees for having the unmitigated gall to take medical leave to care for their family or themselves, maybe they will spend more time recognizing that employees are fellow human beings with enough struggles. A little empathy goes a long way, both in being a good person and in avoiding jury verdicts against you.
If you have experienced FMLA interference or retaliation, you can reach out to Summerlin Law for a review of your employment situation. As an FMLA retaliation lawyer, I represent only employees—not employers—in employment claims throughout South Carolina. You can contact me at (864) 278-5389 or via my Contact Us form for a review of your potential claims.
