Disabled caseworker, Westmoreland County settle wrongful termination lawsuit

Westmoreland commissioners voted Thursday to pay $7,500 to settle a federal lawsuit filed by a former children’s bureau caseworker who claimed he was improperly fired after one month on the job.

Former Fayette County Controller Sean Lally contended he was discriminated against by supervisors in the county’s child welfare office and removed from his job in April 2024 based on false allegations of poor job performance.

Westmoreland County, in court documents, argued Lally’s firing was justified and denied that his disability played a factor in his termination.

“Plaintiff was employed for one month, which was not enough to receive an evaluation or for his supervisors to determine whether he was competent and proficient,” the county argued in response to the lawsuit.

Lally, of New Stanton, has a prosthetic leg. He claimed in the lawsuit that he was fired because his supervisors were uncomfortable being around him, failed to assign him cases, treated him differently than other employees and ultimately concocted a false reason to remove him from the job.

He contended his supervisors falsely accused him of improperly working when he was supposed to be on sick leave and that his bosses directed him to record that he missed a day of work after taking off for an illness despite not having accrued enough time for medical leave.

The case was scheduled for mediation last month.

Michael Bruzzese, Lally’s lawyer, did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.