State of Illinois failed to accommodate employee during COVID pandemic, agency rules

A suburban man turned to CBS News Chicago for help during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic with a David vs. Goliath battle.

Phil Kenny appeared to have scored a partial victory, at least for now, in the saga CBS News Chicago first covered four years ago.

"There's a lot of bitterness on my part the way that that story ended," Kenny said.

Back in 2021, COVID-19 was ravaging the nation, leading to mask mandates and social distancing. Kenny, a Marine veteran, was working for the Joliet office of the Illinois Department of Human Services.

His doctor wrote a letter on his behalf, stating he was at high risk for developing severe complications, even death, from COVID-19. He requested to be allowed not to have to return to the office to protect himself from the virus.

"I was forced to resign," he said. "It was during COVID and my doctor's note said do not come in [to work]."

Kenny was then out of a job and no longer able to return to work. But this year, he earned a partial victory. He took his case to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

"They ruled in my favor on my case against the state," he said.

The federal agency wrote a letter that it found a reasonable cause to believe that Kenny's employer, the State of Illinois, failed to provide him with an effective accommodation. It said the employer retaliated against him for requesting a reasonable accommodation in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Even with the EEOC's ruling in his favor, Kenny said it's not enough.

That's because he has not earned a dime in wages since his forced resignation over three years ago. He said an EEOC investigator tried to negotiate a settlement with the state on his behalf, but they've had no luck thus far.

"They just closed the door," Kenny said. "They just said, 'You know, we're done with you.' Like, I'm kicked to the curb."

Kenney estimated he's owed about $100,000 in lost wages and punitive damages for "the stress, the aggravation ... the frustration of just dealing with this mess. It's aged me quite a bit."

Life hasn't been all bad for Kenny. He's gotten to travel with his wife, including journeys to both coasts. But he can't get past his so-far hollow victory against the state.

Kenny said the saga is "100%" about the principle, "and it's just making things right and being fair."

So if he had a chance to speak directly with the commissioner of the state's Department of Human Services, Kenny shared what he would say.

"The way I was treated," he said. "Like gum on the bottom of a shoe, it just left a horrible feeling with me. It stung and it stung hard."

The state maintains that Kenny was invited to participate in the negotiation process, but he insisted that was not correct and that the state never offered any sort of settlement.

He said he may hire an attorney and sue on his own.