Mom Denied Work Flexibility Asks for a Leave of Absence—And Is Fired. Now She's Suing

Homeschooling and remote work nearly drove her to a "breakdown." Her company was no help.

Hours after she asked about short-term leave, she alleges she was fired.

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Nearly a year into the pandemic, employers ought to recognize the toll this crisis is taking on working parents. One mom, however, didn’t get the support she needed from her manager when she asked for some flexibility; instead, she was fired.

Nimyah Jones-LaCroix is a Queens, New York City-based mom and formerly a contract manager at Socure, a financial services company. Nimyah and her computer engineer husband have been working remotely while managing distance learning for their two kids since March to protect their elderly parents, who also live with them, the New York Post reports.

Balancing full-time work and distance learning for her 4-year-old son and 7-year-old daughter proved to be too difficult after six months—Nimyah asked her manager if she could switch to a flexible schedule in early September 2020.

“I’d be reviewing a contract that I need to turn around ASAP, but I also have to read all the school’s emails, and figure out what my kids are going to do, and I have to figure out, ‘Does someone need to wipe their butt?' ‘You need yogurt,’ ‘You need rice pudding,’ ‘Sit down,’ ‘Be quiet,’ ‘Pay attention to your teacher’—you’re constantly switching from one role to another, which is the story of all working parents during this time,” Nimyah told the New York Post. “It was just too much. I couldn’t figure out how to adjust to this new normal. Do I work early? Do I work later? Do I stay up ‘til 2 a.m.? How do I make sure I’m present with my kids while they’re doing remote learning, and make sure they’re not switching to Netflix?”

Though she explained to her boss that the stress was intolerable and that she found herself crying between meetings, her request was rejected. Shortly thereafter, Nimyah had an anxiety attack and took a sick day. When she returned the next day, she told HR she felt like she was going to have a “nervous breakdown” and asked about taking a short-term leave of absence. According to the lawsuit Nimyah filed against her former employer, three hours later, she was fired.

“Within hours, they just said, ‘See ya.’ I was in shock. I had received an MVP award, I had been doing well, I thought,” Nimyah said.

According to Marcella Kocolatos, a managing attorney at A Better Balance, a legal advocacy organization, Nimyah's leave request might have been protected under federal laws such as the Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) because it was for her own medical needs. However, she noted, many workers aren't protected under those laws. Also, because Nimyah works in New York City, The New York City Human Rights Law provides more expansive protections for workers with disabilities and also specifically prohibits discrimination and unequal treatment based on caregiver status (which federal law doesn't protect). For those who live elsewhere, Kocolatos said, protection varies from state to state.

Working parents know Nimyah’s struggle all too well. And, unfortunately, this isn’t the first time a mom has been fired for pandemic-related reasons. Back in June, another mom was let go from her job because her manager “didn’t want to hear her kids in the background.”

And these are moms who wanted to stay in their jobs. COVID has forced droves of women out of the workforce due to sheer overwhelm—including 140,000 women in December alone. While many moms are simply spread too thin to continue working without childcare, others have no choice but to work to support their family. Moms are being kicked to the curb in the COVID era, and relief can't come soon enough.

Employers, if you’re reading this, cut parents some slack. Offering flexibility to moms—who are superstar employees—will ultimately serve you better in the long-run, and will help close the wage gap and create a more diverse workforce.

Companies who don’t offer the support working moms need right now will objectively end up on the wrong side of history. For employers looking to support their amazing mom employees, these steps should help.