Gastric-bypass surgery's unintended side-effects costs man his job
A legal stink is brewing between Richard Clem and his former employer, Case Pork Roll of Trenton.
Clem claims that a gastric-bypass surgery had unintended, unpleasant side-effects of uncontrollable diarrhea and gas.
"If I'd known it was going to be to that extent," said Clem, "I might not have had the operation. Nobody wants to be called ‘Stinky Boy’ or anything else. As long as they do their job and fulfill their obligation as an employee then they shouldn’t be discriminated against.”
Case Pork Roll and their lawyers wouldn't comment on the case, citing ongoing litigation.
But the company's president told one publication that Clem had not been discriminated against or even fired.
Instead, he said, Richard and his wife left Case after refusing to take a pay cut.
Money is clearly a factor in the story, judging from comments made by Clem in his interview.
Two different approaches are being run by the Clems, who've filed a Federal suit in Camden and a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Clem's lawyer calls him brave.
"He felt like there were symptoms that were really uncontrollable that everyone's jumping on -- but that's not what the story's about," says attorney David Koller, "The story's about him coming forward and being brave about what happened to him at work -- and he contends that he was discriminated against in violation of the law."
The Federal case may take several years to reach its conclusion.