PHOENIX β A fired Arizona Senate staffer said Friday she hopes to go back to work even though it would mean working with β and for β some of the same people who a federal court jury discriminated against her.
βNot only do I want my job back, Iβm entitled to my job back,β Talonya Adams told Capitol Media Service. That relates to the fact that federal law allows someone who is found to have been the victim of illegal employment discrimination to be restored to the prior position, with no loss of pay or benefits.
A federal judge on Thursday ordered the Senate, where Adams had worked until 2015, to reinstate her no later than Oct. 31 βpursuant to terms negotiated by the parties.β That followed an unanimous jury verdict in July finding that her dismissal was not only unjustified but that she was the victim of discrimination as well as illegal retaliation for complaining.
Adams acknowledged that one option would be to negotiate some sort of severance deal, giving her money in lieu of going back to work at the place where she was fired and allowing her to take up her legal practice elsewhere. But she said thatβs not what she wants to do.
βI have a love of public policy,β Adams said.
Adams also was critical of Senate President Karen Fann who late Thursday, after the reinstatement order was issued, said βsomething like this would be awkward in any circumstance.β
βIβm not sure whatβs awkward about treating an African-American policy adviser with a law degree an international MBA that has been wrongfully discharged fairly, professionally, non-discriminatorily and in an equitable manner to her peers,β Adams said.
Fann, however, also said that, ultimately, it will be up to Adams.
βIf thatβs what she wants to do and thatβs what we need to do, fine,β the Senate president said. βOr, if thereβs another alternative, thatβs OK, too.β
Not everyone who was there in 2015 and who Adams charged was culpable in her dismissal is still at the Senate. One of those is Katie Hobbs who, at the time, was the Senate minority leader.
βI do not question that she felt discriminated against,β Hobbs, now secretary of state, told Capitol Media Services in a separate interview. But Hobbs also said that when she was heading the Senate Democrats that no one was wrongly fired.
Adams said thatβs no surprise.
βShe testified at the trial, of course, and sheβs made subsequent statements,β Adams said of Hobbs. βSheβs very proud of her decision and I suppose she stands by it.β
But Adams said thatβs not what the jury concluded.
And she said that stance is reflective of a larger issue.
βI find it unfortunate because thatβs exactly why discrimination exits,β she said.
βItβs invisible, itβs intangible, itβs hard to quantify,β Adams said. βSystematic racism is everywhere.β
And she took a swat at Hobbs for maintaining her position that her firing was justified, particularly in the face of a unanimous jury verdict saying she was entitled to $1 million.
βTo have a sitting secretary of state state that there was no discrimination I think is disrespectful to our judicial system, to democracy,β Adams said. βAnd it gives me grave concern about someone that sits at the helm and governs one of the most sacred rights to people of color,β she continued.
βAnd thatβs the right to vote.β
Hobbs is the stateβs chief elections officer.
Adams is not going to get $1 million, with Judge Douglas Rayes saying federal law caps such awards at $300,000. But it was Rayes who in Thursdayβs final judgment said she was entitled to some of the pay she missed β about $50,000 β as well as her job back.
In filing suit, Adams said she was paid less than her colleagues with similar experience. Hobbs, however, said that had nothing to do with sex or race.
βThere is a problem, and itβs institutional, in the salary structure,β Hobbs said.
βDemocratic staff get paid less than Republican staff,β she continued. βThis has been an issue for a long time.β
Hobbs said she worked during her four years as head of the Democrat caucus to create pay parity.
In the past year there have been adjustments. But Hobbs said those changes are not enough and that Democrat staffers generally are paid less than those for the Republican majority.
Salary issues aside, Adams said β and jurors concluded β that she was discriminated against with respect to the amount of leave she was allowed to take. And they said she was fired for complaining about the discrimination.
Adams said the fact that she got the case into court and got that $1 million verdict β even though it was reduced by the judge β is an accomplishment in itself.
She said it is difficult to prove charges of racism, particularly in convincing jurors that the actions of the employer were intention. In fact, Adams said, thatβs why itβs difficult to find attorneys to pursue these cases and why Adams represented herself.
