KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) - A Kansas teacher who was tripped by a student and knocked unconscious in her classroom is suing the school district for discrimination after she was discharged following an extended work leave.
Former McKinley Elementary School teacher Susan Miles filed a federal lawsuit Monday, the Kansas City Star reported . The lawsuit alleges Miles was injured after a student tripped her in April 2016, and after she returned to work in January, she learned she had lost her job.
Miles alleges the move was retaliation from the school’s principal and the school district in Kansas City, Kansas. She also alleges she wasn’t given a due process hearing when discharged.
The district didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
According to the lawsuit, Miles filed a claim with the Kansas Division of Worker’s Compensation after she fell, saying she had been diagnosed with occipital neuralgia and post-concussive syndrome.
She filed for work leave a month later due to pain. She also took an approved unpaid leave from November 2016 through January, but said her calls to the district regarding her return to work weren’t addressed.
The lawsuit, which alleges no one at the school called an ambulance after she fell, states that Miles had at least two interactions in December 2016 with the school’s principal. It alleges one of the interactions involved the principal telling Miles, “you need to get out of here so our people can work.”
It was only after she returned to school in January that she learned she’d lost her job, according to the lawsuit.
Miles has also filed a disability discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com
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