While trashing talking on Facebook cannot get you fired, publicly celebrating your marriage in a newspaper announcement can. That’s what Laine Tadlock (pictured, right) learned after she was fired from a job at Benedictine University’s Springfield campus in Illinois.
The Catholic university didn’t have a problem with Laine being gay, or even that she went to Iowa to marry partner Kae Helstrom. It’s that she dared share the news in a public forum, with July’s State Journal-Register announcement (that mentioned her employer) ending her gig as the director of the education program. Except Benedictine says on Oct. 28 Laine resigned; she insists she did not.
Benedictine’s lawyers sent Laine’s counsel a note that says, “By publicizing the marriage ceremony in which she participated in Iowa she has significantly disregarded and flouted core religious beliefs which, as a Catholic institution, it is our mission to uphold.”
According to documents Tadlock furnished to the newspaper, the university offered her an early retirement deal Aug. 27 under which she would have been paid one year’s salary, two-thirds of her salary the second year and one-third the third year. The offer also included a confidentiality clause prohibiting Tadlock from talking publicly about what had happened, as well as a waiver prohibiting her from filing suit against Benedictine.
Tadlock and her attorney, Richard Frazier of Springfield, made a counter-offer. They were told there would be no negotiations, Tadlock said. She refused the university’s early retirement offer. In a Sept. 7 e-mail and letter to Frazier, Wolf wrote that if Tadlock would not accept early retirement, then “most likely (the university) will decide to terminate your employment due to incompatibility with the University’s essential mission.” The e-mail was also sent to Carroll and Bromberg.
[…] After Tadlock turned down Benedictine’s early retirement deal, the university put her on administrative leave as of Oct. 1. Then, on Oct. 8, a new offer came to Tadlock from Carroll. He sent a letter that day that said the school was reassigning Tadlock to what Carroll called “a newly created position” — director of assessment, accreditation and institutional effectiveness. She had until Oct. 27 to make a decision. “I told them numerous times,” Tadlock says, “that I’m not qualified. Assessment is not my bailiwick, not my strong point.”
Tadlock was told if she didn’t accept the new position, the university would consider that her resignation. She turned the position down. Frazier then received an e-mail from Wolf, sent Oct. 28, that said “… the university accepts your client’s resignation from employment.” Frazier, Tadlock’s attorney, describes the university’s reasoning as “bizarre.” Tadlock never submitted a letter of resignation, he said. Frazier and Tadlock say they are exploring their options for legal recourse.
Amazingly, Laine’s deputy Maureen Lavin resigned as a show of support for her boss and friend.
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As for pursuing legal action, Laine could show at the very least Benedictine is guilty of violating its own non-discrimination policy. From the employee handbook: “It is the university’s policy to provide equal employment opportunity to all persons without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, handicap, veteran status, marital status, sexual orientation or any basis protected by law.”
The couple’s wedding announcement reads:
Kae Helstrom and Laine Tadlock, both of Springfield, were married at noon June 12, 2010, at Stampe Memorial Lilac Garden in Davenport, Iowa, by Magistrate Cindy Taylor.
Matron of honor was Lisa Tomasino. Best woman was Jonna Cooley.
Kae is a graduate of the University of Illinois Springfield, earning her master’s degree. She is employed as a personal trainer at One-on-One Fitness.Laine is a graduate of Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, earning her Ph.D. She is employed as education program director at Benedictine University in Springfield.
The couple resides in Springfield.
tallskin2
Ah, yet another example of the religion of love proving itself so loving!
If you take away the religious homophobia stories from Queerty you’d have nothing left to report.
Steve
It’s basically a civilian version of DADT. They know people are gay and are fine with them working, but they can’t make it public too much.
Remember this isn’t the only such case.
Geoff B
I live in the same town as them and remember reading the wedding announcement, and thought “How cool. Good for them.” and then I read this article in today’s paper and was saddened and angry. Hopefully she’ll land another job soon, but the fact that she even has to is bullshit. My heart really goes out to this couple.
V
They effectively forced the school’s hand.
The school had no problem with the sexuality or the marriage, but the couple crossed a line with the public announcement, which, after all, put the school in the position of having to take a stand on whether it does or does not stand by the Church’s position.
And the couple surely knew as much. They were gratuitously confrontational.
the crustybastard
@V:
The employer had a nondiscrimination policy.
It’s not mentioned that the employer also has a policy prohibiting publishing information about association with the company in marriage announcements, and can demonstrate it enforced that policy a nondiscriminatory basis.
Obviously they do indeed have a problem with the sexuality and marriage. Ferchrissakes, man — they’re Catholics. They make a living out of that shit.
Catholicism. Hating Gays is Job #1.™
Bob
Catholic schools and any private universities should have the right to do what they want. No private entity should be forced to abide by any nondiscrimation clauses.
counterpoll
Unless Ms Tadlock was charged with a violation of the Uni’s employee policy/handbook or her employment agreement, what grounds can Benedictine stand on? That the school’s non-discrim policy specifically includes sexual orientation seems to run +counter+ to the grounds of her being sacked.
Appears suspicious, to my mind.
cp
Dave
Can you picture those two old ugly woman going at each other-yuk
Nicholas
What did she expect? As a supposedly out and proud lesbian woman, she voluntarily chose to work for a university that supports a religious mission rooted in degrading and dehumanizing her both in terms of being a woman and being a lesbian. It’s not news to anyone that the Catholic Church discriminates against both classes. There’s no gay pride, just gay shame, for gay faculty who work at, or for that matter gay students who attend, Catholic schools because through their work and/or their tuition dollars, they support a misogynist homophobic agenda. It’s like being a Jew who works at Nazi headquarters–you can’t morally excuse yourself by saying “Oh, I just answer the phones.” By working for or attending a Catholic college, you are complicit in the disenfranchisement of your own people.
Remnant2
Looking for love in all the wrong places, instead Love is present in God, His Ways, He is all fullfilling, this disorder of SSA is something so sad, and truly a dead end. They need help, then need to find true satisfaction that only comes from the love of God.
God please teach them “The Way”