STORM WATCH

Morning snow followed by deep cold on Long Island

Pharmacy tech with cerebral palsy sues CVS, claims discrimination

A pharmacy technician with cerebral palsy is suing CVS, claiming discrimination.

News 12 Staff

Dec 21, 2018, 3:24 AM

Updated 2,192 days ago

Share:

A pharmacy technician with cerebral palsy is suing CVS, claiming discrimination.
Dana Paladino, of Islip Terrace, says CVS discriminated against her because of her disability. Paladino, who has cerebral palsy, says she's worked at the CVS in Islip Terrace for 15 years and earned stellar reviews. But Paladino says she's being pushed out by a new manager who allegedly told her she's a "burden" to the company because of her physical limitations.
Paladino is now taking CVS to court with charges of discrimination against the pharmacy giant.
In the federal lawsuit, Paladino claims her physical limitations were never an issue until May 2017, when CVS hired a new manager who told her, "Either you're going to quit, or I'm going to get you fired."
Paladino says another manager told her months later that she was a "burden to the company and a burden to the store."
The lawsuit claims Paladino's managers cut her work hours, putting her at risk of losing her health benefits. Her attorney, Justin Marino, says the ordeal has been traumatic for her.
Disability advocate Douglas King says the actions of CVS' managers clearly violated the American With Disabilities Act.
CVS issued a statement saying: "We dispute the allegations in the complaint filed by our employee, Ms. Paladino. Since the beginning of her employment at CVS, we have provided her with accommodations and we continue to do so."
Paladino's lawsuit seeks unspecified damages, but she says there's more to her court battle than money -- she says she wants to make sure the same thing doesn't happen to anyone else in her position.