His leave was approved every time—then came his performance review
A 17-year Abbott Laboratories employee claims he was fired for taking the very medical leave his employer approved.
Brian Goski, a former Senior Manager of Systems Engineering at the healthcare giant, filed a federal lawsuit on December 31, 2025, in the Northern District of Illinois. His case raises a question that should keep HR leaders up at night: What happens when leave administration and performance management collide?
Goski says he did everything right. He requested leave through proper channels. He got approvals from third-party administrators. His managers signed off. Yet when review time came around, he alleges those same absences were held against him.
The crux of his case centers on a 2023 performance review he received in March 2024. According to court documents, his supervisor praised his "competence and capability to truly excel as a leader" and noted he "holds a lot of insights that can benefit our business." But in the same review, Goski was allegedly told his "visibility did not meet expectations."
The problem, Goski argues, is that his limited visibility stemmed directly from approved FMLA leave for documented medical conditions, including hemochromatosis, irritable bowel syndrome, generalized anxiety disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. He says he renewed his intermittent leave annually from 2021 through 2025, and management knew exactly why he was absent.
This was not an isolated comment, according to the lawsuit. Goski claims most of his prior reviews contained similar remarks about his "on-site presence" or "visibility," even as his leave requests kept getting approved.
He tried to address the issue internally. In August 2024, Goski reached out to Abbott's Human Resources department to raise concerns about his FMLA usage and what he perceived as retaliation. He spoke with multiple employee relations representatives over several months. According to his account, nothing changed.
Then came January 14, 2025. Abbott terminated Goski just five days after he last used approved intermittent FMLA leave. He was 47 years old at the time, with compensation of approximately $265,000 per year including benefits and bonus.
Goski is now pursuing claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, along with several Minnesota state laws. He filed a discrimination charge with the EEOC in October 2025 and received his right to sue letter the following month.
He seeks compensatory damages exceeding $75,000, punitive damages, and attorneys' fees. He has requested a jury trial.
Abbott has not yet responded to the allegations, and no determination of liability has been made. The case remains in its earliest stages.
For HR professionals, the lawsuit serves as a stark reminder: approving leave is only half the equation. How that leave factors into performance conversations, manager feedback, and employment decisions matters just as much, if not more.
