Woman awarded $849K in pregnancy bias case

DETROIT (AP) -- A jury last Thursday awarded $849,000 to a former Wayne State University student who claimed her pregnancy caused discrimination during an internship and was a factor in her removal from the school's social work program. Tina Varlesi, 34, said she got a poor review during a 2008 internship at The Salvation Army because her pregnancy as an unmarried woman offended her female supervisor there. Because of that low review, she was kicked out of Wayne State's School of Social Work, where she was pursuing a master's degree. Varlesi appealed for reinstatement but was turned down. After a 10-day trial, a federal jury ruled in her favor in her discrimination lawsuit against Wayne State officials. "I feel very vindicated and that a wrong was turned into a right. Justice was served," she said. Varlesi said she was told to wear loose-fitting clothes while working at a Salvation Army rehabilitation center for men in Romulus. She said she was called a "beached whale" at the center and was told to stop rubbing her stomach because it was causing men to become sexually stimulated. In court filings, Wayne State insisted that the decision to scratch Varlesi from the social work program was based on performance at The Salvation Army, not bias. "We are disappointed with the verdict and are reviewing our options for an appeal," spokesman Matt Lockwood said. Varlesi's attorney, Deborah Gordon, said her client was punished by Wayne State because she "dared to challenge" her treatment at The Salvation Army. Published: Mon, Feb 4, 2013