Dave Ramsey sued for religious discrimination over COVID strategy
Personal finance guru Dave Ramsey required employees at his company to disregard COVID-19 work-from-home orders and attend in-person gatherings of more than 900 workers, who were encouraged not to wear masks or social distance, a new federal workplace discrimination lawsuit asserts.
Employees at Ramsey Solutions – the Franklin, Tennessee headquarters for the evangelical Christian bestselling author and media mogul – who wanted to work from home instead of coming to office were guilty of “weakness of spirit,” the lawsuit alleges Ramsey said.
Brad Amos, who filed the suit Monday in U.S. District Court in Nashville, said in the suit he asked to work from home out of concern about workplace transmission of COVID-19 because he has a young son with Coats’ disease, a rare affliction that can restrict blood and oxygen to the retina. His wife is also a high-risk individual “with a predisposition for pneumonia,” he said.
A story with buzz:A family heard buzzing behind their shower for years. Then they found 80,000 bees.
Drug and alcohol use down:US teen use saw record decline in 2021, survey finds
Amos in August 2019 took a senior video editor job with the media and live events company. He moved his family to the area in March 2020 after selling their California home.
He charges Ramsey Solutions with religiously discriminating and retaliating against him by firing him from his job in July 2020 after he refused to follow the company’s COVID-19 strategy of “pray and keep moving forward,” and for adhering to his own religious beliefs that “God helps those that help themselves” by following scientific precautions to combat the pandemic.
In a statement to USA TODAY, Ramsey Solutions said Amos’ lawsuit ” is filled with false statements and has absolutely no merit. Mr. Amos was fired during a meeting to discuss his poor performance with his leaders, where he insulted his most senior leader. He was not terminated for his religious beliefs or how he wanted to handle COVID.”
Ramsey Solutions “is fully prepared to defend this lawsuit and prevail,” the statement said.
Amos’ attorney Jonathan Street, said he and his client dismissed a similar suit filed in Tennessee state court in April, after receiving a Right to Sue letter from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission allowing them to file in federal court.
His religious beliefs, which require him to protect his families’ health and safety, Amos said in the lawsuit, ran counter to the company’s “cult-like attitude regarding Mr. Ramsey the entire time of the plaintiff’s employment.”
When Amos initially interviewed with the company, Street told USA TODAY, “they seemed to have their views aligned. When he got there, they actually weren’t. The religion is Dave Ramsey. Everyone has to do what he says and that’s the ultimate mandate.”
Amos was initially allowed to work from home, but he was demoted to assistant video editor. He also said responses given to questions about his personal life including his marriage, supposedly to be private, were shared with upper management, Amos said in the suit.
Amos said he returned to office as required in May 2020 before he was fired two months later. “Employees who…
Read More: Dave Ramsey sued for religious discrimination over COVID strategy