A woman who sued a Wilshire-area Jewish school alleging she was stretched in her work assignments despite having disabilities will have to take her claims before an arbitrator rather than a jury, a judge has ruled.
Christine Flynn’s Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit against the Wilshire Boulevard Temple’s Brawerman Elementary School states that the learning support specialist suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and attention-deficit disorder. She contends that despite her disabilities, she was required to work at the school’s two campuses, manage student groups from different grade levels and follow inconsistent directives from administrators with conflicting expectations.
On Wednesday, Judge William E. Weinberger ruled that the arbitration agreement Flynn signed in 2022 was not unduly weighted in favor of the temple and school. Flynn had contended that the arbitration agreement was unfair because it was presented to her in the middle of the school year, during the middle of her employment, on a take-or-leave-it-basis.
The judge also disagreed with Flynn’s contention that the arbitration agreement lacked mutuality, which in California means that only one party is actually bound to perform, while the other is not.
“(Flynn) fails to show that under the terms of the agreement, (the temple and school) could compel arbitration of certain claims while denying the same to (Flynn),” the judge wrote. “Therefore, plaintiff fails to show that the agreement lacks mutuality.”
Neither side chose to argue during Wednesday’s hearing. A post-arbitration status conference is scheduled Feb. 10, 2027.
In her suit filed last Sept. 24, Flynn alleges failure to accommodate and engage in the interactive process, retaliation, disability discrimination and intentional infliction of emotional distress. She was assigned to work at two campuses, one on Wilshire Boulevard and the other on Olympic Boulevard.
Flynn contends that from the time of her August 2017 hiring the temple and school knew that she had disabilities. However, she was given excessive workloads and logistical challenges, according to the suit.
“On several occasions, plaintiff was reprimanded for following instructions from one principal that were not aligned with the expectations of the other,” the suit states.
Flynn took a leave of about two weeks in February and March 2020 because of the stress, the suit states.
“Her condition was so severe that at one point, her sister had to remain on the phone with her simply to help her through the task of taking a bath,” according to the suit, which adds that Flynn also spent a month in a residential treatment program 2023 in order to deal with her ongoing emotional strain.