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Loading ...Illinois woman files discrimination complaint
Laura Valenziano, as an 18-year employee with United Health Group, is advocating to make her workplace a safe place for GLBT employees.
Valenziano has been advocating within the company as a member of the team seeking to establish a GLBT affinity group within United Health Group.
And, last month, Valenziano became an advocate in another venue, leveling a complaint against United Health with the state of Illinois.
The 55-year-old lesbian cancer survivor from Buffalo Grove, Ill., is alleging discrimination based on sexual orientation, age, gender and perceived disability in a complaint filed in early June with the Illinois Department of Human Rights.
Valenziano, a telecommuter with United Health, alleges her workplace trouble began last spring, after she was assigned to report to a new manager, whose praise for her performance ended after their first face-to-face meeting in Orlando, Fla.
After that meeting, Valenziano said her supervisor at the time began to make off-hand remarks about her older staff members; to ask other employees about her personal life, especially about her partner; to inquire about her health and whether she was up to the job.
The working relationship became strained, and last fall Valenziano was assigned to different administrative duties with her grade lowered to Grade 28 from Grade 29.
Valenziano turned to Chicago attorney Betty Tsamis, who specializes in employment law. “We were working to handle it internally,” Valenziano said.
But the situation escalated.
This spring, Valenziano said she unfairly received a negative annual review that was followed by a contradictory largest-ever bonus, $5,000. Then, after receiving the bonus, Valenziano said she received notice that she was being placed on a “corrective action plan” — corporate-lingo for probation.
“They left me no choice but to file a formal complaint,” Valenziano said. “We’ve struggled with this for over a year.”
United Health spokesperson Jeff Smith said he could not comment on the complaint because it is a legal matter, but he emphasized that the company has a “strong policy against discrimination and retaliation in the workplace.”
While declining comment on the complaint, Smith cited United Health’s high rating — 95 percent out of 100 — with the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index and its partnership with AARP on senior programs.
“Our company also takes a strong stand on its employment practices for diverse age groups,” Smith said.
Tsamis said the company may have employment policies that earn it good marks with nonprofit groups, but that doesn’t mean its management adheres to the policies.
Through the IDHR complaint process, Tsamis and Valenziano are hoping that United Health will participate in mediation and agree to establish a GLBT affinity group, as well as sponsor companywide diversity training.
“We want to make LGBT employees feel as if the environment is safe there,” Tsamis said. “Right now, this is not a safe environment.”
Okay, Morgan, we all get it that you don’t like The Menstruator. You are starting to appear stalkerish.
I would like to see a follow-up to this story as it develops. Meanwhile, is HRC conducting a review of how it’s Index could be revised?
Mentruator….. this happens to men all the time… and usually at the hands of a woman!
People are often singled out for various reasons. Regargless, when it happens it is never a pleasant.
Menstruator,
Speaking of ugly, that’s you, 100% of the time.
The HRC scorecard does not seem to take into account whether or not an organization has received (internally or externally) complaints by LGBT people alleging workplace discrimination. I encourage everybody to write to HRC about this point I raise. UHG’s score comes, in part, because of its policies prohibiting workplace discrimination on the basis of being an LGBT. The score in this area is illusory since UHG is required by law to adopt and disseminate such a policy in Minnesota (corp. headqaurters) and Illinois. HRC should NOT reward a company for complying with the minimum requirements of the law by telling the LGBT community the employer has received a good score in this area. It should be noted, according to a publicly available EEOC press release that in October 2007, UHG settled for 1.8M a case involving same-sex sexual harassment. Though this case does not raise the same issues as Ms. Valenziano’s, it raises issues of possible perceptions UHG has of issues that fall under the umbrella of LGBT issues.
We invite current or former LGBT employees of UHG who believe they have been subjected to discrimination to write to us privately. We also would be interested in hearing from those employees who may have witnessed such discrimination: BTsamis@TsamisLaw.com.
I hate when lazy people are discriminated against. Ha ha. Kidding aside, if this happen to a dude, there’d be 50 million comments here, luckily no one cares when men are fat and ugly, which is 100% of the time.
I hope this woman owns the company when she’s done with them.
I don’t think that enough is known at this point to know who has done right or wrong. All to often, I’ve seen some of the laziest workers be the first to cry discrimination. It has always amazed me that some times the laziest employees skate by for years on the backs of their co-workers.
Sorry folks…this has nothing to do with GLBT issues.
This is because, obviously, since the perception of this woman’s work changed drastically after her first face-to-face meeting with her new supervisor, that supervisor thought she’s ugly…and fat.
That’s it.
This woman’s entire worth, her entire skill set was reduced to her being fat and ugly.
Same thing with virtually any conservative argument against Michael Moore and his documentaries: Sicko and Fahrenheit 911…he’s fat and ugly, therefore he’s wrong.
That’s just the way it works folks.
Since 1961, sodomy was legalized in Illiois (was the first state to legalize sodomy). Then in 2006, discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender idenity became illegal.
In 2009, the RELIGIOUS FREEDOM AND CIVIL UNION ACT has still not passed yet.
I don’t know if there are any companies, short of LGBT owned companies, were we don’t face discrimination. My company has a “non discrimination” policy agaist LGBT but it’s one of the most homophobic organizations I’ve ever worked for. I’ve been passed over for promotions, asked during my interview about “my family situation”, and receive weekly emails from neo-cons on the evils of all things liberal, gay and lesbian issues included. My partner and I were even left out of “family night at the ball park” as not to “offend” anyone. And this is California! I’m looking for another job but in this climate, my options are limited. So far, my performance reviews are stellar but I don’t see a future with this company. I can see they’re trying to push me out the door.
@ Wimsy–right you are!
Love the Dilbertesque BS–blah blah corporate score blah blah strong policy against discrimination and retaliation. It’s spin, and it’s also painful to witness anybody attempt such weak spin. maybe United Health does perform well on the whole, but going so far to defend a manager who could be a very real liability to the company is a little much. If Ms Valenziano did a good job of documenting events, I’d expect her to get a nice settlement, and I’d expect the unnamed manager to be invited to work elsewhere.
Would like to know if any other LGBT United Health employees have experienced unfair treatment in the workplace.
Not surprised. It’s Illinois. This place is just as ass backwards as any Midwestern state- sans Iowa, I suppose. But seriously- this place is disgusting.
Can’t even get a fair break wirth fellow LGBT employers.
It would be helpful to all concerned if you published the supervisor’s name. I wouldn’t want to inadvertently hire the fool after he’s fired from United Health.
We all know that there is a difference in “saying” you will not discriminate against the LGBT community and actually being anti discriminatory against our community.