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Law360 (July 1, 2020, 7:23 PM EDT ) A country club in a Florida retirement community fired one of its longtime employees after he took time off to recover from COVID-19, according to a suit filed in Florida federal court Wednesday.
Randy Constance, a maintenance supervisor at Hollybrook Golf and Tennis Club Condominium Inc. for more than 20 years, said he was also instructed not to tell any club members or co-workers he tested positive for the coronavirus to avoid "chaos." One of his co-workers later died from COVID-19, he said in his complaint.
"This is a case of a premier retirement community holding itself out to its residents and their guests as safety conscious, while simultaneously unlawfully denying its employee, who contracted COVID-19, legal protection through paid sick leave," Constance said.
Hollybrook is a gated retirement community in Pembroke Pines, Florida, according to its website. The club features an 18-hole PGA championship golf course and an 18-hole executive course, as well as tennis courts, pools and a restaurant.
Constance said he told his supervisor on March 27 that he had begun experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. He said he told his boss he would be taking time off and getting tested, and he also recommended that the employees he supervised get tested.
"As a 55 and older community, the age of the residents and members makes some of them particularly vulnerable to COVID-19," Constance said.
Still, the club's general manager, Paul Ray, told him not to share this information with residents, according to the suit.
Constance included a screenshot of a text exchange in which Ray purportedly wrote, "Please be sure not to discuss your medical situation with any Hollybrook resident. It's not appropriate and we are seeing more and more residents thinking they can ask inappropriate questions about employee health specifics."
On April 5, Constance learned he had tested positive for the disease. That day, he told Hollybrook about his results and again recommended his employees get tested. But for the second time, he was told not to tell the employees or the club's residents, Constance said.
Per his doctor's orders, Constance remained in quarantine for several weeks. Local law also required him to self-isolate, he noted.
Constance recovered, but when he returned to work on April 22 he was immediately terminated, he said.
"Following plaintiff's termination, one of his co-workers passed away due to COVID-19," according to the suit.
Constance is alleging violations of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act and the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act as well as retaliation. He's after lost wages and benefits, unspecified damages, attorney fees and court costs.
Counsel for Constance and Hollybrook representatives didn't immediately return requests for comment Wednesday.
Constance is represented by J. Freddy Perera and Valerie Barnhart of Perera Barnhart Aleman.
Counsel information for Hollybrook wasn't immediately available Wednesday.
The case is Randy Constance v. Hollybrook Golf and Tennis Club Condominium Inc., case number 0:20-cv-61312, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
--Editing by Daniel King.
For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.
