The head of Habersham County’s Human Resources Department has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the county. Vinitha Robinson claims county manager Phil Sutton and the board of commissioners discriminated against her because she is black.
In the lawsuit, filed May 4 in U.S. District Court in Gainesville, Robinson claims they denied her pay raises that were given to white department heads. She also alleges the defendants failed to pay her for additional duties they assigned her although white employees are paid for the extra work they do.
“Mr. Sutton continues to give Ms. Robinson duties that are beyond her job description,” the lawsuit states. “Mr. Sutton refuses to evaluate Ms. Robinson job duties and reclassify her position and job salary.” The suit also charges that both Sutton and the board of commissioners treat Robinson differently from the other employees “because she is a black woman.”
The lawsuit alleges the defendants have engaged in race discrimination and have denied Robinson her Fourteenth Amendment right to equal protection under the law.
County Attorney Donnie Hunt confirms that Sutton and Commission Chair Stacy Hall were both served with the lawsuit on Tuesday (May 12). Hall was served in his capacity as the commission chair. Sutton was served in his individual capacity which could result in personal liability.
“As the parties were just served yesterday, each has 21 days to respond. Representation is undetermined as of yet pending assignment of counsel by the County’s liability carrier,” Hunt tells Now Habersham. He says he does expect an answer to be filed by the June 2 deadline “unless an extension is requested and granted.”
Seeking damages and injunctive relief
Robinson is seeking monetary damages including back pay from raises she might have received absent the alleged discrimination, as well as damages for emotional pain and suffering. She also is seeking punitive damages against Sutton and attorney fees.
In addition to compensatory damages, Robinson is asking the court to issue a permanent injunction against the Habersham County Board of Commissioners to prevent the board from discriminating against her or other employees in the future.
Her attorney, Michael Mondy is seeking a jury trial. “Everything that Ms. Robinson says in her lawsuit is true,” he tells Now Habersham.
Both Sutton and Hall refused to comment on the lawsuit. They deferred all questions and comments to the county attorney. Hunt says Hall notified the other commissioners about the lawsuit Wednesday morning. Now Habersham reached out to them by email. Commissioner Tim Stamey was the only one who responded. As of 9:20 a.m. Wednesday, he said Chairman Hall still had not notified him.
Commissioner Stamey was shocked to learn of the lawsuit. The timeline outlined in court documents indicates the alleged events occurred before he took office in December 2019. “I haven’t had any interaction with her outside budget briefings,” he says.
Mondy says Robinson continues to work for the county and “is there doing her job every day.” He says despite the lawsuit, he’s confident her job is secure. “Federal law protects workers who come forward and say they’ve been discriminated against.” He says he’ll reserve further comment until the county files its answer to the lawsuit.
READ lawsuit here
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