Wrongful Termination Lawsuit Results in Settlement for Interim CEO
A $25 million wrongful termination lawsuit filed over two years ago against Erlanger Health System has just settled for $900,000. Former interim CEO Charlesetta Woodard-Thompson alleged that she experienced threats, computer hacking, and racial discrimination during her time as interim CEO at Erlanger, and that these factors contributed to her position being eliminated while she was on paid medical leave in 2013. Woodard-Thompson’s lawyer, Jennifer Lawrence, argued that trouble began for her client in the spring of 2012, when she was looking into internal conflicts involving cardiologist Mitchell Mutter. Because two trustees, Nita Shumaker and Phyllis Miller, had “personal relationships” with Mutter, they allegedly began a conspiracy to discredit and ultimately oust Woodard-Thompson. When she was let go, the hospital paid out only her unused vacation time, as opposed to the six-figure severance packages they typically gave to former executives.
As a hospital employee for 21 years, Woodard-Thompson held different jobs, from the chief of human resources to chief operating officer to interim CEO from both 2003 to 2004 and 2012 to 2013. Despite applying in 2012 to make her CEO position permanent, an application that had the support of multiple physicians, she didn’t even make the short list of candidates. In addition, during this time period, she had several colleagues warn her of risks to her safety by doing such things as telling her to learn how to shoot, to keep her parking location a secret, and to have security guards walk her to her car each day. Woodard-Thompson also alleged that several high-ranking hospital officials called medicine “a white man’s world” when they were in the process of selecting a permanent CEO; that black and white cardiologists worked in separate departments while she was investigating Mutter; and that Erlanger’s in-house lawyer, Dale Hetzler, told her he had hacked her email and her files at board members’ requests. After Erlanger hired a new CEO, they eliminated Woodard-Thompson’s position in June of 2013, only a couple of months after she began paid medical leave to have a procedure and consider her retirement options. When filing the lawsuit in the summer of 2013, Woodard-Thompson said, “I could have taken a fat check and walked quietly away. I haven’t taken one single penny. What I want is for Chattanooga to be better. We’ve got to take care of the people who can afford it and the people who can’t. We have people who are only interested in lining their pockets, and not interested in health care for the Valley, or what’s happening to our employees or our physicians.”
Although the case went to trial, instead of the projected four-week timeframe it only lasted four days, at which point Judge Neil Thomas dismissed the jury, saying that lawyers had worked hard to come to an agreement. The settlement, which Erlanger states is not an admission of legal liability with regard to Woodard-Thompson’s claims, grants her $900,000, divided into $480,000 for “compensatory and other non-wage items,” $120,000 for three months of wages, and $300,000 for her legal expenses. According to an Erlanger spokesperson, this amount is comparable to what the hospital originally offered Woodard-Thompson, which she refused. Woodard-Thompson hasn’t commented publicly yet on the settlement, but perhaps at this point, she has accomplished her initial goal by drawing significant attention to the problem.
If you have been wrongfully terminated, consult a workers’ compensation attorney who can review your case. You could receive compensation if you pursue a wrongful termination lawsuit.
