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February 4, 2003Pavilions sued over hiring practices- Attorney says putting time limit on civil rights complaints is illegalBy PATRICK SULLIVANRecord-Eagle staff writer TRAVERSE CITY - A lawsuit over an employee grievance at the Grand Traverse Pavilions has led to a class action civil rights lawsuit filed on behalf of all employees of the nursing facility. The dispute also has sparked charges from lawyers for the Grand Traverse Pavilions that the lawsuits amount to harassment and only waste time and resources. In a suit filed in Grand Traverse County Circuit Court, attorney Enrico Schaefer claims the Pavilions engages in hiring practices that violate civil rights because employees are forced to give up their right to sue for damages. Schaefer's suit describes a waiver that potential employees must sign when they apply for a job that limits an employee's right to sue to 180 days from the date of an alleged civil rights violation. He said that because of certain filing requirements for state and federal lawsuits, the 180-day limit makes it virtually impossible for lawsuits over grievances to be filed on time. Thomas Wurst, attorney for the Pavilions, said that Schaefer's claim is simply not true. "You can file a lawsuit and pursue a charge," Wurst said. "He is 100 percent wrong." He called the latest lawsuit "harassment." He said Schaefer filed an earlier lawsuit after the expiration of the time limit. A hearing on a motion filed by Wurst for summary dismissal of that lawsuit is scheduled for later this month. In that case, former Pavilions nurse Bonita Williams sued the nursing facility, claiming she was demoted after a patient's wife called her a "dirty Indian." Williams is asking for damages over $50,000 for lost pay and for medical problems she says she suffered as a result of humiliation. "The employer has an obligation to step in and protect the employee from discrimination," Schaefer said. Wurst argues that Williams was not demoted, merely reassigned to similar job duties. He said the reassignment was routine and not the result of alleged racism by a patient's family. "We are spending a great deal of time and effort defending this type of lawsuit," Wurst said. "It involves an inordinate amount of time to respond to these charges. The time is better served elsewhere." Patrick Sullivan is the reporter for crime, courts and public safety. He can be reached at (231) 933-1478, or at psullivan@record-eagle.com
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