Jury Awards $5.2 Million To Woman Who Says Boss Fired Her Over Panic Attacks

A jury awarded $5.2 million to a woman today who claimed that she was wrongfully fired by her boss because she suffered from panic attacks.April Rodriguez, 34, of Rancho Cucamonga worked as a customer service representative at a waste disposal company called Industry-based Valley Vista Services Inc. She sued her former employers and the parent company Zerep Management Corp. after she was fired in January 2010, according to City News Service.

Rodriguez testified that she suffered often from panic attacks and claimed in her lawsuit that her bosses did not accomodate her mental disability. Lawyers for the company contend that they fired her because she failed to show up to work for three days in a row without an explanation. They said that they were not told that she suffered from a mental disability.

A Los Angeles jury has been deliberating the case since late Friday afternoon. There will be a second phase starting tomorrow to determine whether Rodriguez should be awarded punitive damages as well.