The complaints that allegedly led to his firing included saying "good morning"
Cardinal Health is facing a federal lawsuit from a long-tenured supervisor who says the company fired him because of his age and gender.
Robert Jeffrey Mason, 65, filed the suit on April 1 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, alleging that Cardinal Health, Inc. terminated him after a brief investigation into what he describes as routine supervisory conduct. Mason had worked at the company for roughly a decade as Supervisor of Operations/Quality Inventory Control Supervisor, leading a team of about 10 employees. He says he had consistently good performance reviews and no history of discipline.
The trouble started, according to court filings, shortly after Mason hired Raleigh O'Connor, a woman in her mid-20s, on September 22, 2025. Within days of her start date, O'Connor lodged approximately 12 complaints against Mason. The nature of those complaints, as laid out in the filing, raises questions that HR leaders may find uncomfortably familiar.
Among them: Mason said "good morning" to O'Connor. He requested to exchange cell phone numbers with her, which he says was standard practice for all employees on his team. He helped set up her computer because IT was not available. He asked her "Are you mad at me?" after she spoke to him in what he perceived as an angry tone. He used the phrase "hey girl" when greeting O'Connor and other women on his staff.
Mason says these interactions were either mischaracterized or taken out of context. He also points to security camera footage that he claims disproves at least one allegation — that he followed O'Connor out of the building at the end of her shift.
Cardinal Health suspended Mason with pay on October 16, 2025, without providing a reason. Five days later, the company told him he could not return until its investigation wrapped up. Two days after that, on October 23, it let him go, citing "inappropriate comments to a female employee," "violations of the standard of conduct," and "harassment and bullying."
Mason contends the real reasons were his age and his gender. He argues that a female supervisor who behaved the same way would not have been fired, and that similar complaints from a male employee about a female coworker would have been easily dismissed. The lawsuit cites the 2025 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Ames v. Ohio Dept. of Youth Servs., which held that Title VII protections apply to members of majority groups as well.
The filing also notes that O'Connor was not disciplined or terminated after she openly discussed a strip club with coworkers soon after joining the department.
Mason is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, including lost wages and emotional and physical distress, and has demanded a jury trial. The case is Mason v. Cardinal Health, Inc., No. 2:26-cv-00394. No determination on the merits has been made.
For HR teams, the case underscores a tension that is only growing sharper: how to take workplace complaints seriously without overcorrecting in ways that may expose the organization to a different kind of liability entirely.
