Overview
- The ruling, which came Monday, threw out Jason Donner’s sick-leave retaliation claim and closed his lawsuit against Fox News.
- Judge Amir H. Ali wrote that records show Donner skipped work and did not tell his boss he was sick until about 11:30 a.m., after telling a coworker mid-morning and his father the day before he planned to call out.
- Ali said the D.C. sick leave law protects workers who give notice as early as possible, and AP reports Fox also requires notice no later than two hours after a shift start.
- In 2024, Judge Christopher R. Cooper had already dismissed Donner’s separate claim that he was targeted over his objections to Fox’s 2020 election and Jan. 6 coverage under the D.C. Human Rights Act.
- The outcome highlights how timing and notice rules, rather than editorial disputes, can decide workplace cases in D.C. courts.