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By ELAINE SILVESTRINI
The Tampa Tribune
TAMPA - Kenneth M. Fox says his painful arthritis requires him to keep moving, but his bosses are forcing him to take lunch breaks.
Fox, a 55-year-old military veteran from Pinellas County, is suing the U.S. Postal Service under the Americans with Disabilities Act, claiming the mandatory lunch breaks are a violation of his rights under the law.
Fox has worked since 1997 as an automation clerk at the airport postal facility, according to a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court.
Before retiring from the military, Fox had “a very long and physically arduous career” with the special operations branch of the military, the lawsuit said. Consequently, he suffers from “a severe and painful degenerative arthritic condition,” which has worsened.
“Fox’s condition is such that the pain, discomfort and muscular problems in general that he experiences (are) tolerable during his work hours if he is able to stay mobile or essentially continue working throughout his shift,” the lawsuit says.
If he stops moving, “his muscles begin to freeze up and his arthritic condition becomes extremely painful,” the lawsuit says.
The complaint says Fox asked his supervisors not to require him to take lunch breaks, and for several years, the bosses agreed.
But that changed, the lawsuit says, and supervisors made lunch break mandatory for all employees, including Fox.
When he complained, he was subjected to “further hostile and disparate treatment,” the suit says, without giving specifics.
The lawsuit, which asks for an injunction and attorneys fees, says allowing Fox to work through lunch is a “reasonable accommodation” required under the Americans With Disabilities Act.
A spokesman for the Tampa post office declined to comment on the suit because it is pending litigation.
Wouldn’t it make sense for him to just go for walks while eating during his lunch breaks? Are we not being told that he was also allowed to get off early or use the untaken lunch break towards overtime and this mandatory lunch is now causing him to lose an hour of early leave or an hour of overtime?
I don’t get it. If he was getting overtime for his lunch breaks, then the party is over. He can always walk around for 45 minutes and stretch his bones. I feel this keeps things equitable among his co-workers who are probably mad ‘cause he gets overtime..maybe he sneaks in a sandwich now and then?? I’m just saying…
Are his employers forcing him to sit or stand still during his lunch? Can he not move around or even do some exercises for his muscles during his break? This seems somewhat silly as I highly doubt he is being forced to be still during these lunches. I would also hate to see something like this be allowed and then have employers find a way to use this as a means not to have to give lunches to people or force you to work through lunch.
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Posted by Mark Groenstein, Tampa on 03/22 at 04:23 PM
Though I sympathise with this man I think the people he most likely ought to be suing are his union representatives who probably forced the postal service to enforce the mandatory lunch break on a previous case. I can’t say for sure that is the case but it wouldn’t suprise me if it was. What employer wouldn’t appreciate their employees doing extra work during their lunch break? If I was an employer I would.