Adult care home owner must pay $21,620 to fired whistleblower

The state Bureau of Labor and Industries has ordered the owner-operator of a shuttered adult care home in Lane County to pay $21,160 in back wages and damages after firing an ex-worker who reported a food shortage for residents of the facility.

An employee of a Lane County adult care home who reported a shortage of food for residents is entitled to $1,620 in back pay and $20,000 for emotional distress, the state Bureau of Labor and Industries announced Wednesday.

The bureau ordered Blue Gryphon LLC and its owner, Flora Turnbull, to pay back wages and damages after finding she illegally retaliated against the employee, Lewis Garchow.

A state investigation found that Turnbull suspended and then fired Garchow after he made a good faith complaint of a food shortage at the Springfield facility, which has since closed.

"No one should have to fear for their job because of reporting neglect or abuse," Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian said in a news release. "It's critical that whistleblowers are free to raise safety concerns on behalf of vulnerable foster care residents."

Blue Gryphon operated a mental health foster home caring for residents diagnosed with severe and persistent illness. Before 2013, the home set a monthly food budget of $1,200 for its five residents, but reduced the amount to $800 as expenses tightened, according to testimony during a hearing in September.

In March 2013, Garchow expressed concern to a visiting nurse, who was there to see a client, that there was not enough food for residents for the weekend. The nurse told Garchow that both she and he were "mandatory reporters" with a duty to report neglect.

After the visit, the nurse reported Blue Gryphon to several state agencies and Lane County Protective Services. Garchow also contacted Lane County Protective Services about lack of food, the bureau said.

Before his firing, Garchow had never been disciplined or written up by the owner. After his dismissal, he testified he fell behind on his rent and lost his car during his months-long search for a new job. The state's back pay award is based on three weeks of work at $12 per hour.

Though Blue Gryphon is no longer operating, Avakian's final order issued Nov. 24 allows the state to pursue collections against Turnbull as an aider and abettor of the business, said Charlie Burr, a spokesman for the labor bureau.

Turnbull disputed the state's findings in a phone interview Wednesday.

"None of that's true - I didn't even fire him," she said of Garchow. "He made false complaints to the county, which made the home shut down. His goal all along was to end up extorting money from me."

Alan McCullough, the administrative law judge who presided over the two-day hearing in Eugene, found that "Turnbull was not a credible witness."

-- George Rede

grede@oregonian.com
503-294-4004
@georgerede

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