US: Teacher claims he was sacked by lesbian boss for being straight
A PE teacher from New York City has claimed that he was sacked by his gay boss for being straight.
Gregory Kenney was a gym teacher at the Trinity School on the Upper West Side of Manhattan for sixteen years before he was sacked in June 2012.
The 50-year-old alleges in his lawsuit against the school that he was sacked for being straight by his lesbian supervisor who, he says did not approve of his “traditional family status”.
He said that athletic director Pat Krieger was unfazed by his complaints about being asked to coach three sports, rather than the two his contract required of him.
The married teacher said Ms Krieger “routinely favoured other single, younger females without children and discriminated against [him] because of his gender, sexual orientation, ‘traditional family status,’ and age.'”
Speaking in an interview with the New York Post, Mr Kenney said he “felt ostracised because of his family”, and that he had complained because the extra duties he was asked to fulfil had interfered with his home life.
He said he complained about being asked to work evenings and weekends.
The lawsuit later states that “On at least one occasion Kenney was dissuaded from attending social events with his peers because he was a heterosexual, married male with children, who wouldn’t fit in with [Krieger’s] ‘culture.’”
Continuing, he claimed not to have been the only teacher to have been let go, and says that three others were also dismissed under similar circumstances.
Mr Kenney denies allegations behind the reason he was dismissed that he had illegally sublet his school-provided apartment, and also denied allegations that he had left students unsupervised.
He says the charges were made up at the time in order to have him sacked. He seeks unspecified damages from the school.
