Summary Judgment Hearing Preparation

i have a summary judgement hearing coming up and i want to make sure the timeline of events i put together supports our claims of discrimination and retaliation

• */*/* o Gallegos began his employment as a sales associate at Turner’s Beachton, Georgia store. [Ex. “A”, Affidavit of Danny Taylor]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o Gallegos was transferred from the Beachton, Georgia store to Turner’s Tallahassee, Florida store. [Ex. “A”, Affidavit of Danny Taylor]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. o Promoted to Turner’s Tallahassee store Assistant Manager.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*]  Rebuttal to claim: I was promoted to the Assistant Manager Position at the Tallahassee store. I filled this position for one year without any reprimands or disciplinary actions. • Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o Gallegos was offered the Store Manager position at Turner’s Tallahassee store. He accepted the position effective December *, *. [Ex. “A”, Affidavit of Danny Taylor]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*]  Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o January manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  Typically held at Turner Distribution Center in Tifton, Georgia  Always in attendance: Austin Turner, Fortson Turner, Chip Lee, Danny Taylor, Tim Balasko, Tim Ortmeyer, and Mark Hannon.  Most of the discussion was about the sales figures of the Turner stores.  Some of these meetings were just the Turner Budget store Managers. Other meetings also included the Turner Fine Furniture store Managers.  During or after these meetings Turner Management could have had discussions with Gallegos to address any concerns, issues, improvement plans, or any topic relevant to making the Turner Tallahassee store successful as well as Gallegos. • No documentation by Turner or Gallegos exists due to the fact no such conversations occurred. • Documented in testimony from Danny Taylor, Tim Balasko, Tim Ortmeyer, Austin Turner, and Fortson Turner. • */*/* o February manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same. • */*/* o March manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same.  Gallegos’ manager meeting notes when vision was spoken about. • */*/* o April manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same. • */*/* o May manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same. • */*/* o June manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same. • */*/* o July manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same. • */*/* o Rebuttal to claim: “He (Gallegos) reported being unhappy in his role”: On Wednesday July *, *, at *:* pm at the Thomasville Fine Store in Beachton Georgia, I (Gallegos) met with Austin Turner. I brought to Austin Turner’s attention that Tim Balasko was making derogatory comments and was discriminatory towards the female employees at the Tallahassee Store. Speaking openly, I said it was affecting me enough that I was considering resigning from my position if these issues could not be resolved. Austin said he believed this was an issue that only I was having with Tim Balasko. I said he could ask others about their interactions with Tim Balasko and that their reports would support my statement. He said he would investigate these issues and he committed to keeping Tim Balasko out of the Tallahassee store until resolved. With assurance from Austin Turner that he would investigate the issues I reported, I committed to staying in my role as Store Manager, which he agreed was for the best of the store. We also discussed briefly what I needed to continue the success of the Tallahassee store. I said that I needed assistance finding an Assistant Manager that could assist with some of the administrative tasks. He agreed. I explained that although I am good at the administrative tasks as reflected in the store’s success, I would like to dedicate more time to the development and success of the staff, store and ultimately the organization. This would make me feel more fulfilled as a manager. Austin agreed.  Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o August manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same. • */*/* o September manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same. • */*/* o October manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same.  Gallegos’ manager meeting notes when vision was spoken about. • */*/* o Turner began to consider replacing Gallegos with a new manager and moving Gallegos back to a sales position. [Ex. “B”, Affidavit of Tim Balasko]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. o No documentation from Turner’s on any disciplinary actions or notes indicating days and times they spoke to Gallegos about any issues.  Documented in testimony from Danny Taylor, Tim Balasko, Tim Ortmeyer, Austin Turner, and Fortson Turner.  Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*]  Rebuttal to claim: I (Gallegos) filled the Store Manager position for one year without any reprimands or disciplinary actions. As stated in the employee handbook, employees are to first be presented with a verbal/written warning discussion for correction, a second written warning if issues persisted, then a third written warning if issues were not resolved. Each step indicating what needed to be corrected and what the actionable steps that would be taken if employee did not correct the behavior up to and including termination. I was never presented with any warnings regarding my performance as a manager. • Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] o No notes by Gallegos of any conversations with Tim Ortmeyer, Tim Balasko, Austin Turner, Fortson Turner, or Danny Taylor about any issues or corrections Gallegos needed to address.  Gallegos always documents important information with date and time so that he can act on important items discussed. Evidence of such notes can be presented. o No disciplinary records, notes, or reviews in Gallegos’ employee file.  Documented in testimony from Danny Taylor, Tim Balasko, Tim Ortmeyer, Austin Turner, and Fortson Turner.  Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] o Prior to this decision there were * Turner manager meetings in which Turner’s had the opportunity to discuss any issues with Gallegos. Turner did not and has no documentation to support any such discussions.  Rebuttal to claim: As further evidence of my (Gallegos) performance as the Tallahassee Store manager, a Respondent report regarding November * sales numbers indicated the Tallahassee Store was at *.*% of its * goal, which was better than * stores and comparable to * store of the * Turner Budget Stores. On this same report the Tallahassee store was at *.*% over its previous * goals, which was better than * out of the * Turner Budget stores. • Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] • The other lower-performing Managers were not disciplined or demoted as Gallegos, showing Gallegos was treated differently from any other individual Manager. o The only reasonable explanation for Turner’s action is the July *, *, conversation with Austin Turner concerning Tim Balasko’s hostile and discriminatory actions towards the female staff at the Turner Tallahassee store, resulting in Turner’s retaliatory actions against Gallegos. There is no other evidence prior to */*/* that supports Turner’s claims of disciplinary issues, issues with Turner’s vision, or conflicts with any Turner employee. o Documentation Turner’s has provided supporting their reason for the December *, *, demotion of Gallegos would be pretextual to this decision to replace Gallegos on */*/*, [Ex. “B”, Affidavit of Tim Balasko]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. o Please accept this as Turner Furniture of Leon County’s response to the Charge of Discrimination based on Disability and Retaliation filed by ****ie Gallegos (“Complainant”).  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*] o Turner clearly states Retaliation in their response to the EEOC. • */*/* o Turner interviewed Gallegos’ eventual replacement, Skip Chmielewski, for the position Gallegos held at the time. [Ex. “B” and Text Messages Between Chmielewski and Manager Tim Balasko attached thereto as Attachment *]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. • */*/* o November manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  Gallegos told Turner management that the employees at his store were starving for a company vision. Management referred Gallegos to the Turner employee handbook that contained Turner’s mission statement and urged Gallegos to share the mission statement with his store. [Ex. “B”, Affidavit of Tim Balasko] • Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. • Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*]  Rebuttal to claim: “He (Gallegos) also told management that the employees were “starving for a vision of where the company was going”: At the October *, *, at *:14am managers meeting in Tifton Georgia, Fortson Turner asked “How do we get to the next level of excellence?” He shared a quote he had heard from speaker Horst Schulze, who Fortson recently saw speak. Fortson said he was impressed with the speaker. Inspired by this, I later purchased Horst Schulze’s book Excellence Wins (receipt attached) along with his video series on Need to Lead (receipts attached). In his book and videos, Schulze explains the difference between a mission and vision statement. In my conversation with Fortson and Austin and in response to Fortson’s question, I told them of the definition from Horst Schulze’s book and asked them to help define a vision that would resonate with staff and get staff and management excited. • Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*]  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same. • */*/* o Turner finalized its decision to remove Gallegos from the manager role and move him back to the Beachton, Georgia store in a sales associate role. Turner management also agreed that Gallegos would continue to receive his manager salary through the end of the year to allow him to get his sales commission up before changing his base pay. [Ex. “B”, Affidavit of Tim Balasko]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [Exhibit B, EEOC No. *-*-*] o Rebuttal to claim: “After this November meeting, management decided to replace Complainant. Because he had been a good Sales Associate and valued employee, the decision was made to move him back to the Thomasville store in his Sales Associate position where he performed well. (Exhibit B) Management decided to pay him a manager’s salary until the end of the year to give him time to get his sales up. Turners began searching for a replacement in November of *. The decision on the replacement was made before Black Friday of *. (Exhibit C and D)” I was never presented with any verbal or written warnings regarding my performance as a manager or informed that they wanted to replace me as Store Manager or told of any plans to move me to the Thomasville store in a Sales Associate position. Further, the Respondent indicates in the first sentence of paragraph * that “After this November meeting, management decided to replace Complainant.” However, the text message (Exhibit A) from Cynthia Barrett is dated November *, *, and the November meeting occurred on November *, *. In addition, the offer letter (Exhibit C) is dated November *, *. Additional emails between Chip Chmielewski and Tim Balasko are dated November *, *, and November *, * respectively. Therefore, the Respondent’s claim that “Turners began searching for a replacement in November of *” and “The decision on the replacement was made before Black Friday of *” would prove false and that the process to replace me as Store Manager was started prior to November *. In addition, in Exhibit D on November *, *, Skip Chmielewski mentions that he had met with Austin and Fortson Turner, indicating this process started prior to November.  Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] o Once that decision was made, Turner took steps to finalize the hiring of Gallegos’ replacement, Chmielewski. Turner offered the manager position on November *, *. [Ex. “B” and Turner Offer Email to Chmielewski attached thereto as Attachment *]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [Exhibit C, EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o Chmielewski accepted the position the following day, on November *, *, and agreed to a start date of December *, *. [Ex. “B” and Chmielewski Acceptance Email to Turner attached thereto as Attachment *]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [Exhibit D, EEOC No. *-*-*] o Rebuttal to claim: “That did not seem to resonate with him (Gallegos) because after a November * meeting, Cynthia Turner, an employee of Turner, informed Tim Balasko that Gallegos told the store employees that he had “talked with the Turners about a vision for the company and they just looked at each other” (Exhibit A).” From the conversation on October *, *, I understood that the Respondent wanted their mission statement to dictate the direction of the store. At a November *, *, Saturday staff meeting, I told the staff that I asked the Turners at the manager meeting for their vision and they referred me to the mission statement as our vision. I stated that the Turners did not understand the definition of a vision as defined by Schulze, but that was OK and that we as a team would embrace the mission statement and utilize it to help the staff, store, and organization succeed. At the Tallahassee Saturday staff meetings, I would present content from the Need to Lead Horst Schulze video series team guides (examples attached) and as a team we would discuss how we could incorporate that idea into our current Turners sales process to improve ourselves and help improve customer satisfaction.  Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] o Tim Ortmeyer was at the Turner Tallahassee store on this same day but never addressed any issues with Gallegos about the staff meeting, o There were * Sales Associates, * Office Clerk, and * Warehouse staff at this meeting. None of them filed a complaint or sent a text to management about the verbiage Gallegos utilized during the staff meeting.  Sales Associates • Domingo Vaca • Dane Viehe • Debbie Conn • Julia Burroughs • Robert Sullivan • Jeremy Williams • Adam Rubin • Madison Britt • Skylar Lewis  Office Clerk • Cynthia Barrett (Optional, as these meetings were for sales staff. Gallegos included Cynthia so that her perspective could help the Tallahassee Store accelerate its success.)  Warehouse • Jerry Dewey (Optional, as these meetings were for sales staff. Gallegos included Cynthia so that her perspective could help the Tallahassee Store accelerate its success.) • */*/* o Screenshot of Cynthia Barrett's Text to Tim Balasko. [Ex. “B”, and image of text from Cynthia Barrett to Balasko attached thereto as Attachment *]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [Exhibit A, EEOC No. *-*-*]  As a screenshot Gallegos would question the validity of the message, unless presented on the phone it was received on. • */*/* o Turner internally finalized Chmielewski’s hire and began setting up his onboarding process. [Ex. “B” and Email on Chmielewski’s Onboarding attached thereto as Attachment *]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. • */*/* o December manager meeting scheduled by Turner.  See */*/* manager meeting notes, as this meeting was the same. • */*/* o The Saturday before the Monday meeting at which Gallegos would be informed of Turner’s decision regarding his role, Gallegos was injured at work when a wooden TV stand fell off a stack of stands onto his upper body. He reported the incident to management who suggested he see a doctor, but Gallegos said he was fine and declined medical treatment. [Ex. “B”, Affidavit of Tim Balasko]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*]  Rebuttal to claim: “He was hit in the head.” A wooden TV stand fell from the top tier of a stack of three TV stands that reached an approximate height of * to * feet above the floor, striking me on the left side of my head from my temple area back towards my ear and then striking my neck and right arm. It pinned me down on top of the recliners and Deborah Conn, Cynthia Barrett, and Domingo Vaca arrived to help lift the TV stand off me and help me to a chair to sit down. • Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*]  Rebuttal to claim: He (Tim Ortmeyer) asked if I (Gallegos) was OK. I told him that I had a severe headache and swelling on the left side of my head, but that I was doing OK. He reminded me that if I need to see a doctor to go to Patients First. I said at that time I was doing OK but if that changed, I would seek medical attention.  Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o Turner planned to inform Gallegos of the decision on December *, *.  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*]  Rebuttal to claim: “Turner management was to speak with him about the new arrangements on Monday, December *, *. • o The management meeting went forward as scheduled. Gallegos again mentioned the Saturday injury, and Turner again suggested he seek medical treatment, which he declined. [Ex. “B”, Affidavit of Tim Balasko]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*]  Rebuttal to claim: Tim Balasko asked how I (Gallegos) was doing. Again, I stated that I had a severe headache and had swelling on the left side of my head, but I was doing OK. I told Tim Balasko and Tim Ortmeyer that if anything changed, I would let them know and seek medical attention. The Respondent did not offer for me to take the day off. I told them that on Sunday and Monday of each week I am the Store Manager, Office Manager, and warehouse staff as those staff members have Sunday and Monday off. I inquired if either of them would assist if I took time off, but no further discussion occurred about the incident, and they began telling me why they wanted to meet with me. • Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] o As planned, Turner management informed Gallegos of Turner’s decision to replace him as manager and have him return to his prior sales associate position. [Ex. “B”, Affidavit of Tim Balasko]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Rebuttal to claim: Then, they (Tim Balasko and Tim Ortmeyer) proceeded to remove me (Gallegos) as the Tallahassee Store Manager. • Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] o Chmielewski will start at TDC (Turner Distribution Center). [Ex. “B”, Confidential New Manager Email attached thereto as Attachment *]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. • */*/* o That night or the next he (Gallegos) went to the Emergency Room complaining of injury to his head and neck. Complainant was taken off work by his doctor and received Workers Compensation benefits.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*]  Rebuttal to claim: At *:* am on December *, *, I woke my daughter LaVon Edgerton as I was having severe head and neck pain from the December *, * injury. She drove me to the TMH Emergency Room. The ER performed a CT scan. They prescribed pain medication to alleviate the severe pain. They diagnosed me with a Cervical Strain and a Concussion, both of which can present symptoms immediately or over a * hour or more time period (TMH ER report attached). • Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o Chmielewski started the Turner Tallahassee store Manager Position. [Ex. “B”, Confidential New Manager Email attached thereto as Attachment *]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. • */*/* o Gallegos filed a charge with the EEOC/FCHR, in which he claimed Turner discriminated against him due to his actual or perceived disability (the injury discussed above) and worker’s compensation claim and that as a result he was replaced by Chmielewski. [Ex. “C”, EEOC/FCHR Charge of Discrimination.]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. • */*/* o Gallegos filed his worker’s compensation claim as a result of an on-the-job injury that occurred on December *, *. [Ex. “A”, Affidavit of Danny Taylor]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o Turner’s EEOC Position Statement with First Exhibit Disclosures Supporting Turner’s demotion of Gallegos.  Documented in Position Statement by Turner Furniture of Leon County [EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o Gallegos Rebuttal to Turner’s EEOC Position Statement supporting Turner’s Pretextual evidence of retaliatory actions towards Gallegos.  Documented in Gallegos EEOC Rebuttal of Turner EEOC Position Statement. [EEOC No. *-*-*] • */*/* o The EEOC/FCHR issued a Dismissal and Notice of Rights.  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. o Notice of Suit Rights  Title VII  Americans with Disabilities Act  Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act  Age Discrimination in Employment Act  Equal Pay Act (EPA) • Documented on EEOC Dismissal and Notice of Rights [EEOC Charge No. *-*-*] • */*/* o Gallegos voluntarily resigned from Turner as part of the settlement of his worker’s compensation claim. [Ex. “A”, Affidavit of Danny Taylor]  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*. • */*/* o Gallegos filed the Complaint that started this lawsuit. The Complaint alleges three causes of action against Turner: Count I – Disability Discrimination under Fla. Stat. *, Count II – Disability retaliation under Fla. Stat. *, and Count III – Workers Compensation Retaliation under Fla. Stat. *.*. Each of these counts is predicated on the workplace injury and the alleged disability associated with it.  Documented on Defendant’s Motion For Summary Judgement filed */*/* Filing #*.

currently counts I and III have been dropped with prejudice and I want my attorney to file a motion for reconsideraation

these were dropped without any consultation with me, my attorney made the decision

I am also wanting to include the timeline of events as they show pretext and support retaliation after the july *, * with the owner of the company about discrimination. I was also demoted 2 days after a workplace injury without any reason. the defendant's documentation is dated Oct *, * which is after the decision to replace on Oct *, *

the defendant did not provide this documentation until after i filed for workers compensation on */*/* and the defendant provided documentation to the EEOC in their position statement. which I believe supports all counts including an addition count that has been amended to the original complaint.

yes it needs to be supported by all pertinent case law, florida statutes, and all disability laws. As my attorney is saying she will not file a motion for reconsideration based on "in good faith"

can you draft an email to my attorney including all the relevant information required