ECONOMY & WORK
MONEY 101
NEWS
PERSONAL FINANCE
NET WORTH
About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Terms of Use DMCA Opt-out of personalized ads
© Copyright 2023 Market Realist. Market Realist is a registered trademark. All Rights Reserved. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.
MARKETREALIST.COM / ECONOMY & WORK

Alleging harassment and discrimination, woman sues company that paid her to do nothing for 20 years

Laurence Van Wassenhove has been getting her full salary for the last 20 years even when she is doing no work for The Orange Telecom.
PUBLISHED JUN 25, 2024
Cover Image Source: Woman sues telecoms company (representative image) | Pexels
Cover Image Source: Woman sues telecoms company (representative image) | Pexels

A French woman has sued her former employer for giving her no work despite giving her a salary. She filed a lawsuit against a large telecommunication company accusing of them intentionally barring her from work. Laurence Van Wassenhove got her full salary for the last 20 years even when she was doing no work for The Orange Telecom.

Tagging herself as the "outcast" she filed a complaint to the government and High Authority for the Fight against Discrimination but nothing much happened. Now, she has sued the company on the grounds of moral harassment and discrimination at work linked to her health.

The trained HR assistant reportedly suffers from severe health issues including epilepsy and hemiplegia, a paralysis that only affects one side of the body, which barred her from being able to work. Wassenhove, who is a mother of two children, one of whom is autistic says that she faced eviction and struggled to make ends meet despite being paid her full salary.



 

Wassenhove, who was initially hired as a civil servant by France-Télécom in 1993, was later offered the role of a secretary to accommodate her health needs. After the company was taken over by Orange, Laurence requested a transfer to another region of France in 2002, which is when her problem began. The company conducted an occupational medicine report that confirmed that the position was not suitable for her, which resulted in her being put on standby, and later on sick leave before offering her retirement due to her disability. 

The mother of two says that her complaint to the government and High Authority for the Fight against Discrimination was later mandated but failed to help her. She feels as if she is wasting herself in a way by being kept in her home, "Being paid, at home, not working is not a privilege. It's very hard to bear," she told The Sun.



 

Her lawyer, Me David Nabet-Martin claimed that she is suffering from depression due to her severe and isolating circumstances. Mr Nabet-Martin says: "Work, for a person with a disability, means having a place in society. Recognition. Social connections that are created."

In another statement to a French newspaper La Dépêche, the company said that they had done everything in their control to make sure that Laurence was working in the best conditions and also claimed to have taken her "personal social situation" into account. They added that they had also worked a "return to work in adapted position" but it didn't work out as Wassenhove started taking sick leaves frequently.



 

The French multinational telecommunications company has more than 266 million customers worldwide and employs more than 89,000 people in France and another 59,000 people worldwide. In 2023, the company reportedly made a revenue of €43 ($46.14) billion. The company has been known for its mobile, landline, internet, and internet protocol television services since 2006. The company later became a subsidiary of Mannesmann in 1999 and was later acquired by France Télécom in 2000. On 1 July 2013, France Télécom was rebranded to Orange, as per the group's official site. 

MORE ON MARKET REALIST
It made her realize how it was something that her husband would never face.
18 hours ago
You need to look for the series date located on the right of the photograph of George Washington.
1 day ago
Winfrey assured him that it isn't too expensive saying that it costs only about "a hundred something" dollars.
3 days ago
The shiny blue suitcase itself made up for the investment and she made more startling discoveries.
3 days ago
Many took to the comment section and talked about the situation, with some saying that it was no big deal.
4 days ago
The traveller took to X to share the screenshots of the apps showing the price difference.
5 days ago
Getting struck by lightning and then surviving to win a lottery worth $1 million is next to impossible.
5 days ago
When the bill came, the group of four was shocked and their reactions were captured in a TikTok video which now has over 8.8 million views.
6 days ago
Parcells wrote the checks worth millions and never even asked the players to pay the money back.
6 days ago
The way he lived and his chosen career path never gave anything away about his investments.
7 days ago
She also recommended taking time before responding to messages to gauge the person's real intentions.
7 days ago
The revolutionary new ad-tech startup STIC has officially launched, enabling everyday drivers to turn their vehicles into rolling billboards and earn extra income with each mile.
Nov 6, 2024
Apart from the discounts, Walmart also announced changes to delivery timings and updates on an AI assistant.
Nov 2, 2024
People will receive a share of the massive settlement based on the number of bars that they bought between the given dates.
Nov 2, 2024
The expert that Harrison consulted gave valuations that were closer to what the seller was asking for.
Nov 2, 2024
O'Leary's comments are backed by data showing how a vast majority of Americans need coffee to kick-start their day.
Nov 1, 2024
The man's wife refused to believe him since she was used to him playing pranks on her.
Oct 29, 2024
When told that his profit margins were low, the innovator said that he was selling the product to farmers.
Oct 29, 2024
The overlay text of the video reads, "Pov: you and your boyfriend accidentally make 20k+ profit reselling SALT on Amazon."
Oct 29, 2024
Although he does plan to take some me time, Richer has no intentions of retiring anytime soon even at 60.
Oct 28, 2024