In Moscato v. City of New York, No. 157923/2023, 2024 WL 4277258 (N.Y. Sup Ct, New York County Sep. 24, 2024), the court, inter alia, denied defendant’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s claim of a disability-based hostile work environment claim asserted under the New York City Human Rights Law.
From the decision:
To state a claim for hostile work environment under the NYCHRL, a plaintiff need only allege that they were treated “less well” than other employees because of their disability. The standard under the NYCHRL is broader than under federal or state law, where the conduct must be severe or pervasive. In this case, Plaintiff alleges that the NYPD’s refusal to accommodate his disability created a hostile work environment by subjecting him to overexertion, negative evaluations, threats of termination, and anxiety about his health.
Plaintiff asserts that these actions were directly related to his disability and that abled-bodied officers were not subjected to the same treatment. The evidence provided, including allegations that Dr. Santucci ignored Plaintiff’s medical documentation and failed to engage in a cooperative dialogue, supports Plaintiff’s claim that his work environment was hostile. Under Serrano v. City of New York (226 AD3d 575 [1st Dept 2024]), differential treatment of similarly situated employees can support a claim for hostile work environment. Here, Plaintiff alleges that his abled-bodied colleagues were treated more favorably and were not subjected to the same scrutiny or risk of termination, thereby creating an inference of hostility.
The court finds that Plaintiff has sufficiently pled a hostile work environment claim. Defendants’ contention that the alleged actions were mere “petty slights and trivial inconveniences” is unpersuasive, given the repeated threats of termination and the disregard for Plaintiff’s health concerns.
The court additionally held that plaintiff sufficiently alleged claims of disability discrimination/failure to accommodate, as well as failure to engage in a “cooperative dialogue.”