Update: Former Southwest Research Institute Employee Awarded $550,000 In Retaliation Lawsuit
SAN ANTONIO -- Southwest Research Institute was fined $410,000 for firing a female employee in an act of retaliation because she filed sex discrimination complaints against the company. A jury found in favor of Mary Ellen Johnson — who was terminated after 12 years with SwRI — in the federal trial that began in San Antonio April 1.
In the final judgment filed May 25, the judge ordered the research organization pay out more that $550,000 and send a letter rescinding a negative incident report they filed on Johnson with the Defense Department. Her lawyers argued the report jeopardized Johnson’s ability to get security clearances and employment in the future.
“And essentially what happens is you’re blacklisted, or blackballed in the industry and unable to get another job,” said Colin Walsh, one of Johnson’s attorneys.
Walsh said there’s no guarantee that the new letter will negate the incident report.
Read more: https://www.tpr.org/post/update-former-southwest-research-institute-employee-awarded-550000-retaliation-lawsuit