NEW ORLEANS – A former Tulane employee is suing the university in federal court, alleging she endured escalating harassment and discriminatory treatment, was denied advancement opportunities, and ultimately was forced to resign.
Plaintiff Teri Pritchett filed her lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana Dec. 8.
Pritchett, a Black woman, began working for Tulane in October 2019. She claims she “consistently” performed her duties in an “exemplary” manner and received positive recommendations for advancement.
However, beginning in early 2020, she contends she began experiencing discriminatory and hostile treatment as a result of her family responsibilities.
“When Plaintiff’s husband was deployed from November 2020 to September 2021, she was compelled to work night shifts without any consideration for childcare, despite notifying command staff that she was the sole caretaker for her young child,” her 36-page complaint states.
Pritchett claims white male officers with less seniority were moved to day shifts or allowed preferential scheduling.
She also claims that on numerous occasions she independently sought out various certifications and training only to be denied the opportunities and have white male officers attend in her place.
After being promoted to sergeant in October 2021, Pritchett alleges she experienced additional disparate treatment.
“Two day-shift sergeant positions opened, and Plaintiff, who had seniority, had requested both positions. The Chief instead assigned two Caucasian male sergeants, promoted after Plaintiff, to both positions, again denying Plaintiff advancement and scheduling opportunities,” her filing states.
She alleges she was the target of “unreasonable and retaliatory” Internal Affairs complaints in December 2021 and January 2022.
She was the subject of another complaint in October 2022, though she argues it also was retaliatory in nature.
Pritchett alleges a fellow officer filed the complaint against her after she had reported him for insubordination, among other things. As a result of the complaint, she received a three-day suspension stemming from an allegation of “unprofessionalism,” was reassigned to the downtown medical district, and was rendered ineligible for promotion for an entire year.
In January 2023, Pritchett claims she informed Tulane staff that her husband had received deployment orders.
“Plaintiff provided all available documentation and repeatedly followed up from January through April,” her filing states. “Tulane ignored her communications and failed to inform her whether she needed to involve HR or whether accommodations would be provided.
“Plaintiff was ultimately forced to seek FMLA protection, which was initially denied and later approved in April 2023, though Tulane still refused to finalize scheduling accommodations until July 18, 2023.”
The Family and Medical Leave Act, or FMLA, is a federal law providing eligible employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for specific family and medical reasons.
She contends during that time, the harassment and discrimination continued. She was told by a male supervisor that she would be treated differently “than a white male sergeant” and that she was “not a real sergeant” because she worked an eight-hour shift under her approved FMLA accommodation instead of a 12-hour shift.
Pritchett later learned, in September or October 2023, that Tulane was preparing to terminate her and that she should “look for other employment,” despite not having been given the opportunity to provide her side of the story.
“Having endured years of discrimination, retaliation, hostile work environment, denial of opportunities, biased internal investigations, and impending unlawful termination, Plaintiff was forced to resign on October 10, 2023,” her lawsuit states, noting her resignation was not voluntary but constituted a constructive discharge.
“As a direct and proximate result of Defendant’s racially discriminatory practices, Plaintiff suffered lost earnings, lost promotions, emotional distress, reputational harm, and ultimately a constructive discharge.”
Pritchett seeks back pay, front pay, liquidated damages, punitive damages, pre-judgment and post-judgment interest, her share of state unemployment insurance and other required employment taxes, and attorneys’ fees.
The Minias Law Firm in New Orleans is representing her in the action.
