As COVID-19 infections surged in April, Abbe Dolobowsky said, she was given a hard choice.
The 66-year-old human resources manager from Fair Lawn has asthma and kidney disease, she said. But according to Dolobowsky, her request to work remotely at St. Mary's General Hospital in Passaic was met with an ultimatum: Report to the office, or take an unpaid leave of absence.
She eventually would be granted sick leave. But in early January, Dolobowsky pushed back: She sued for discrimination, saying the hospital had violated state law.
She's not the only one going to court over workplace conditions during the pandemic: This month, a factory worker for Sealy Mattress Co. in Paterson alleged he was fired in retaliation for filing a grievance over allegedly lax face mask rules.