Woman Claims She Was Fired Over Increased Breast-Cancer Risk
A woman whose genetic makeup may put her at increased risk of breast cancer has reportedly filed first-of-its-kind administrative complaints in Connecticut alleging that she was illegally fired from her job at MXenergy last month because she tested positive for the BRCA2 gene.
Pamela Fink says in complaints filed with the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that the company started reviewing her job performance more negatively and shifting her job duties after she revealed the genetic testing, reports the Connecticut Post.
The article doesn’t include any response from MXenergy, and the Associated Press says it left a message for the company today that apparently did not receive an immediate response.
Fink’s lawyer, Gary Phelan of Outten & Golden, says her termination was in violation of the federal Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, the newspaper reports.
She had a double mastectomy last year because of her genetic status and a history of breast cancer in her family.
