The accommodations allegedly requested? Just intermittent leave and breaks
Mars Petcare US sued for allegedly firing worker days after disability accommodation request
A forklift driver says Mars Petcare US fired him one day after he pressed for an answer on his FMLA leave request.
Abdoulaye Soumana filed a federal lawsuit on March 13 in the US District Court for the Southern District of Ohio (Soumana v. Mars Petcare US, Inc., Case No. 2:26-cv-00297-MHW-EPD), alleging the company terminated him because of his disability and to interfere with his right to medical leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act.
According to the lawsuit, Soumana had worked as a forklift driver at Mars Petcare's Columbus, Ohio location since around March 2021. He was diagnosed with a lumbar spine condition that caused right leg weakness — a condition he says substantially affected his ability to work. He informed both the company and his manager of his disability.
The sequence of events at the heart of the case, as laid out in court papers, moves fast.
On or around September 24, 2024, Soumana submitted medical documentation requesting FMLA leave. He also told his manager, identified in the suit as Lonicker, that he needed reasonable accommodations — specifically, intermittent leave and appropriate breaks when needed.
The next day, having received no response, he followed up.
The day after that — September 26 — Mars Petcare let him go.
The lawsuit alleges the company never assessed the cost of the requested accommodations, never explored alternatives, and never sat down with Soumana to talk through options — a step known as the interactive process, which employers are generally expected to take when a worker raises a disability-related need. According to the filing, the company never explained why the request was denied.
Then there is the question of internal discipline. The suit alleges Mars Petcare maintained a progressive disciplinary policy — one that called for verbal and written warnings before any termination. Soumana says he received neither. Instead, the company allegedly went straight to firing him, skipping over every earlier step in its own policy.
The lawsuit raises five claims, including disability discrimination and failure to accommodate under both federal and Ohio state law, as well as unlawful interference with FMLA rights. Soumana is seeking compensatory damages in excess of $25,000 per claim, punitive damages in excess of $25,000, attorney's fees, and injunctive relief — including mandatory training on discrimination for all employees and supervisors, and the creation of a process for investigating discrimination complaints.
For HR professionals, the case is worth watching — not for its novelty, but for how common the underlying scenario is. Accommodation requests involving intermittent leave and breaks are among the most routine an employer will field. The allegations here suggest those requests were met with silence, then denial, then termination — all within roughly 48 hours.
No determination has been made on the merits of the case. Mars Petcare has not yet filed a response.
