Supervisor allegedly cited worker's "attendance and health" to block a transfer
A former John Deere employee is suing the agricultural equipment giant, alleging she was fired for using medical leave and speaking up about disability discrimination.
Laiken Donaldson worked as a Material Coordinator at Deere & Company's Harvester Works facility in Moline, Illinois, from in or about January 24, 2023, until she was let go on or about July 16, 2025. In a lawsuit filed on April 13, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois (Case No. 4:26-cv-04098), Donaldson alleges the company discriminated against her because of a disability, failed to accommodate her medical needs, and retaliated against her for exercising her rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act.
Donaldson says she has stage four endometriosis, a condition that causes debilitating pain, fatigue, and complications requiring ongoing medical care, treatment, and surgical intervention. Despite this, she maintains she was fully capable of doing her job, with or without reasonable accommodation.
As her condition worsened, Donaldson applied for and was approved for intermittent FMLA leave in or around March 2025. She also asked for accommodations, including time off for treatment and a transfer to a less physically and mentally strenuous role within the company. According to the lawsuit, Deere never meaningfully engaged in the process of working out those accommodations. Instead, the company allegedly ignored and effectively denied her requests and began treating her disability and need for leave as a liability.
What happened next is where the case gets especially relevant for HR leaders.
On or about June 30, 2025, Donaldson applied for an internal position that would have been better suited to her condition. Her supervisor, Molly Crosby, allegedly blocked the transfer, pointing to Donaldson's "attendance and health" as the reason. The very next day, Crosby reportedly told Donaldson, "You are allowed at your leisure to miss work" — a remark the lawsuit describes as a direct reference to her FMLA leave.
Donaldson says she raised the issue with Crosby's supervisor, Elliot Shriver, reached out to Human Resources, and filed an internal compliance complaint. Rather than address her concerns, the company allegedly suspended her, told her it was "speaking to attorneys," and ultimately terminated her employment on or about July 16, 2025, citing "insubordination" and "poor performance."
Those reasons, Donaldson alleges, were pretextual. She says she had no prior disciplinary record and had recently received a high-tier performance evaluation.
The lawsuit brings five counts — spanning disability discrimination, disability-based harassment, failure to accommodate, and retaliation under both the ADA and FMLA. Donaldson is seeking back pay with interest, front pay, loss of benefits, compensatory and punitive damages, liquidated damages, and reasonable attorneys' fees and costs. She has requested a jury trial.
No determination has been made on the merits of the case. All claims reflect the allegations set out in the complaint.
Still, the fact pattern reads like a checklist of what can go wrong when supervisors mishandle disability and leave situations — blocked transfers tied to health status, dismissive remarks about protected leave, and a termination that appears to contradict the employee's own performance record. For HR professionals, this one is worth watching.
