Black worker sues US companies after they sent police to his home for a “wellness check” while he was on medical leave

A Black Workday employee filed a lawsuit against his employer for racial and disability discrimination. The lawsuit alleges that the employer sent police to his home for a “wellness check” while he was in the hospital for treatment and had requested medical leave.

Anthony Hill, a Black senior counsel at Workday who is on leave from the company, filed a lawsuit against Workday in December 2023 in the Northern District of California court. The lawsuit alleges racial and disability discrimination. The case is not yet closed.

A fight for justice

In June, the court dismissed the case without prejudice because Hill did not apply California law extraterritorially. Workday is based in California, while Hill is based in Maryland. Hill has since filed an amended complaint that Workday is seeking to dismiss.

Legal settlement negotiations last month were unsuccessful and the case is ongoing. Hill said he is on medical leave from October 12, 2022 to November 22, 2022.

Hill stated that he began drinking more before his vacation due to increasing stress. On October 12, 2022, he sought treatment at a hospital for “stress, exhaustion and trauma” allegedly caused by discriminatory and hostile treatment from other Workday employees, as detailed in the lawsuit.

That day, Hill emailed his supervisor to report a medical emergency and tell her he was going to the hospital. He also submitted a completed leave request form and indicated that he would soon provide the required Family and Medical Leave Act documentation.

The next day, Hill's manager responded with information about FMLA and advised him not to worry about work and to prioritize his recovery. But on October 20, 2022, while Hill was still hospitalized, Workday sent police to his home for a “wellness check.”

According to a police report, a Workday security manager requested a welfare check on Hill. The manager said the company was unable to contact Hill or his wife, his emergency contact. Police spoke with Hill's wife, who confirmed that Hill was receiving medical treatment.

Hill told Business Insider that Workday did not attempt to contact him by phone call or email after his manager's last email on October 13 and before the incident. Unable to use his cell phone in the hospital, Hill learned of the police visit from a rehabilitation center employee who also allowed him to call his wife.

When Hill heard about it, he said he felt like he was “having a heart attack.” His wife, who was at home at the time, was also alarmed by the incident. The wellness exam took place at the Montgomery County Police Department, which declined to comment because it is not involved in the lawsuit.

“You would have thought that on October 20, police with guns couldn't solve anything that doctors with stethoscopes couldn't solve,” Hill told BI. Workday is still mum in this report. FMLA ensures that eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks of unpaid medical or family leave per year.

However, the employee should mention that they are taking leave for FMLA reasons. On the other hand, the employer should inform the employee that he is entitled to sick leave and instruct him to complete the paperwork.

The Department of Labor requires employers to give employees 15 calendar days to submit their complete medical certification for FMLA leave.

Hill initially expressed concerns about FMLA compliance during a hospital stay due to incomplete documentation. However, hospital staff informed him of this legal protection and he confirmed that the hospital provided the required FMLA documentation within the 15 day deadline.

After filing an EEOC lawsuit against Workday in April 2023, Hill filed a lawsuit against the company in the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia in August 2023. However, this first lawsuit was voluntarily dismissed without prejudice.

Return from sick leave and subsequent inquiries

Several months after returning from leave, Hill requested additional information from Workday's human resources department regarding the March 2023 health check. However, the human resources department declined to provide any information or documentation regarding the incident.

“You won’t tell me anything. Did they think it was an emergency? Did they think I was in danger?” Hill said, “Did they think I was going to hurt someone? Why did they send the police to my house and put my wife and children in danger?”

Although Workday may have intended to contact Hill to complete his FMLA paperwork, calling the police is an unusual and potentially troubling move, according to Cassie Lenning, a partner at Outten and Golden, a law firm specializing in representation sending an employee home for a health check Tech Employees. The company is not involved in the lawsuit.

It is noteworthy that Tesla managers in Germany introduced the practice of visiting employees at home to check their illness status in September after a significant increase in sick leave rates. This incident raises questions about the appropriateness of such actions and potential privacy concerns, particularly when compared to the Workday case.

According to Lenning, in certain circumstances it makes sense to send someone for a health check if an employer is aware of an employee's mental health problems. “Even under these circumstances, why wouldn't they send someone out of the office and not the police?” Lenning said.

“There is still a certain level of escalation when it comes to calling the police, whether well-intentioned or not. I question the judgment of someone who would send the police to a black man's house. There are racist implications that are being ignored,” she added.

Hill reported that he experienced “horrible treatment” upon returning to work, including increased resistance and exclusion from invitations to meetings. He also mentioned working on a revised mid-term plan.

In January 2023, Hill reported his race and disability discrimination claims to Workday's human resources department and requested a transfer to a different group. After investigating the matter, the company's human resources department closed the case in March, concluding that his claims were “unfounded.”

Request for promotion and alleged discrimination

Hill, who has been with Workday since January 2021, wanted a promotion before leaving. However, the company rejected his application and his manager instructed him to prepare and submit a document detailing his achievements. “This is a hurdle that my non-Black colleagues have not had to overcome,” Hill said.

He later faced resistance from colleagues when he insisted on adopting company policies restricting gift-giving to government officials. According to the lawsuit, one of Hill's colleagues told him during a meeting, “Everyone knows you don't want to work, Anthony.”

Hill reported to his supervisor that a colleague's increased morale and claim to his professional reputation appeared to be racially motivated. “It was very clear to me that they were setting me up to fail,” Hill said.

Hill was initially placed on administrative leave and later approved for disability leave, but his application for long-term disability benefits was denied, according to his statement. “There is no doubt that I have suffered repeated retaliation,” Hill said.

Workday is facing a class action lawsuit alleging its AI-powered employer software discriminates against applicants.

Despite public statements condemning racism following the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Sonya Massey, who was shot by former officer Sean Grayson, many tech companies have made minimal progress in improving diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging within them organizations made.