Ex-Framingham Worker Sues City, Claims Harassment Over Sick Days

FRAMINGHAM, MA — A former Framingham city worker who suffers from irritable bowel syndrome is suing the city, claiming that his former boss harassed him for taking sick leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act. The employee left his job last January after he was unable to endure the work environment, his lawyer says.

Shane Hurley began working for the Framingham Public Works sanitation division in 2007. During his employment, he used intermittent FMLA leave, which is permitted under the law with an employer's permission.

According to the lawsuit, Hurley's supervisor, Daniel Nau, accused Hurley of abusing the leave. The supervisor would follow Hurley around during the day, and write negative things about his sick leave in performance reviews, the lawsuit says. In late 2018, Nau suspended Hurley for being absent from work, which led to Hurley leaving his job the next month.

"The allegation is that Framingham's behavior was so bad it forced [Hurley] to leave," Hurley's attorney Suzanne Herold said.

The lawsuit was initially filed in September in Middlesex Superior Court, and seeks $25,000 or more in compensation for emotional distress. In late December, Framingham's attorney successfully removed the lawsuit to federal court because the case involves a federal law.

Framingham city officials declined to comment on the suit, and the city's attorney did not respond to a request for comment.

FMLA became law in 1993, and allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year for things like taking care of a child or tending to a chronic illness. The law protects employees from being terminated for taking that time off.

Massachusetts recently enacted a Paid Family Medical Leave law, which will offer compensation to people who need to take time off from work for an illness, the birth or adoption of a child, or to take care of a sick family member. Benefits under the law won't be available until Jan. 1, 2021.