Charles Locklear, a 61 year-old diabetic who served as dean of Oakland Schools' Technical Campus Northwest for 21 years, filed a lawsuit saying he was placed on administrative leave and then terminated after contracting COVID.
According to the complaint, Locklear was terminated by Oakland Schools after 1) he was required to work in person, 2) after he reported the COVID outbreak at the Northwest Campus and 3) after he contracted COVID after being required to work in-person by Oakland Schools.
"Mr. Locklear would not have contracted COVID had he been allowed to safely work remotely like his supervisors and the rest of Oakland Schools' leadership," the complaint says.
Students were not permitted on campus for in-person leaning at the start of the 2020- 2021 academic year and Oakland Schools' Central Office staff and its executives worked remotely, and the Oakland Schools Board exclusively conducted virtual meetings to ensure their own safety.
"However, campus instructors and local campus administrators, including Mr. Locklear were required to attend work in-person by Oakland Schools in violation of State of Michigan and Oakland County safety regulations," the lawsuit says.
It seeks an unspecified amount of damages. The school later released a strong statement saying Locklear was to blame for being let go.
Dandridge Floyd, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources and Labor Relations at Oakland Schools, said at a special meeting of the Oakland Schools Board of Education on February 23, 2021, the Board voted unanimously to accept the Superintendent's recommendation to terminate Locklear for "unprofessional conduct."
"Such conduct included recklessly disregarding safety rules and procedures implemented to protect employees against COVID and providing false information to health officials impacting their ability to properly trace potential COVID exposure," she said, adding the termination followed a thorough investigation during which Locklear was placed on paid administrative leave.
The following is an excerpt from the public hearing (requested by Locklear) on Feb. 23.
Not only did you mishandle the Preparedness Plan rollout and fail to communicate with central office, you reported to work on October 12, 2020, completing the daily health screening tool attesting you were not experiencing COVID symptoms. The investigation determined you were visibly exhibiting COVID symptoms as you met with employees and traveled throughout the NW campus on October 12, 2020. Contrary to statements made by you that you worked until late afternoon on October 12, 2020, the investigation revealed that you departed shortly after noon. You did not report to work on Tuesday, October 13, 2020 or Wednesday, October 14, 2020. You did not complete the daily health screening tool either day and did not otherwise report to Oakland Schools at risk symptoms. You advised Oakland Schools on Thursday, October 15, 2020, that you had tested positive for COVID. According to the investigation, you then told the Oakland County Health Department epidemiologist contact tracer that on October 12, 2020 you remained in your office alone all day and never had contact with any individuals the entire time you were at work. Relying upon this false statement, the Oakland County Health Department did not conduct contact tracing and advised Oakland Schools further quarantine was not necessary. Unfortunately, individuals who were in close contact to you during your contagious period were not contacted to quarantine.
He tells an opposing story, saying that even after he reported multiple COVID cases at the Northwest Campus to Oakland Schools' officials, Oakland Schools did not take any steps to quarantine employees nor to move to remote work for instructors and staff on the Northwest Campus.
"Even after Mr. Locklear recovered from COVID, which he contracted while being required to work in-person for Oakland Schools, Mr. Locklear was prepared to return to the work he loved," the lawsuit says, adding that "Just before his return to work, however, Oakland Schools placed Mr. Locklear on administrative leave without any explanation and Mr. Locklear was told that he could not return to work."
After paying over $21,000 in taxpayer funds for a law firm to prepare a purported internal investigation report, which Oakland Schools refuses to provide to Mr. Locklear or anyone else, Oakland Schools' superintendent Dr. Wanda Cook-Robinson recommended that Locklear be terminated.
At a public Board hearing on February 23, 2021, 12 employees of Oakland Schools voiced their support for Locklear.
The suit claims that the Oakland Schools Board still voted to terminate Locklear based on "baseless and factually false allegations."
"Oakland Schools is attempting to use Mr. Locklear as a scapegoat for its own failed COVID policies, which resulted in several employees contracting COVID and the illnesses of numerous employees including two hospitalizations.
It adds: "Oakland Schools has not been transparent and has sought to cover-up the nature and extent of the COVID outbreak at Northwest Campus, and is using taxpayer money to further that objective."
