A Kaiser Foundation Hospitals nurse is close to settling her suit against the company in which she alleges management was slow in helping her get back to work for most of 2021 after she contracted the coronavirus from a Kaiser doctor the year before and sought accommodations, according to new court papers in the case.
Allesha Jeffries' Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit alleges failure to reasonably accommodate, disability discrimination, failure to engage in the interactive process, disability harassment and failure to prevent harassment and discrimination.
A minute order issued Thursday by Judge Upinder S. Kalra's clerk stated that both sides are close to a resolution.
"Both sides represent to the court that a settlement has been reached and additional time is needed to finalize terms," the minute order read.
In their court papers, Kaiser stated that Jeffries' causes of action were barred in whole or in part by the statute of limitations and that any actions taken concerning her were legitimate.
Jeffries has been employed at Kaiser's Los Angeles Medical Center in the neonatal intensive care unit since 2012 and is an outspoken advocate for patients and co-workers, the suit states. In March 2020, she was exposed to a doctor who had COVID in a break room at the facility, according to the suit, which further states that Jeffries was unaware at the time that the doctor had the coronavirus.
Three days after the exposure, Jeffries had a mild cough, fatigue and aches, but was not running fever, so she contacted Kaiser for guidance and was told to report to work, according to the suit. Jeffries eventually found out that the doctor had the coronavirus and she later contracted pneumonia, which prompted Kaiser to order her to quarantine at home for two weeks, the suit states.
Jeffries was on and off work for the remainder of 2020 as she continued to suffer lingering symptoms from COVID-19, including an impairment of her hearing, the suit states. Jeffries alleges that over an extended period of time and effort she was not accommodated by Kaiser for her hearing loss, and that Kaiser considered her request "vague," the suit states.
When Kaiser allegedly refused to accommodate Jeffries in her existing position, she began applying for other jobs within the organization, but the internal portal showed she was not under consideration for those posts, according to the suit. Management met with Jeffries in April, but she was not allowed to have her cell phone, which she uses to control her hearing aid, the suit states.
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Jeffries eventually wrote management a letter stating she was "losing hope" and that she would take her case to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission if she was not accommodated within two weeks, the suit filed in December 2022 states.
After having been off work since late January 2021, Jeffries returned to work in July 2022 -- five days after she and Kaiser had an interactive process meeting -- and Kaiser management has honored her wish to use her cell phone to control and operate her hearing aid and use her own stethoscope, the suit states. She believes she would not have been allowed to resume her job had she not threatened to file a complaint with the EEOC, according to her suit.
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