A federal judge has ordered Tampa Fire Rescue to reinstate a firefighter who was fired nearly two years ago on the day after she filed a discrimination and retaliation lawsuit against the city and the department.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, U.S. District Court Judge Elizabeth Kovachevich ruled on Wednesday that the agency has 60 days to reinstate 36-year-old firefighter Tanja Vidovic, who won her case against the city on Dec. 7 and was awarded $245,000 in damages by a jury.
"I'm happy to go back to work and I'm excited to be back serving the public at a job that I love," Vidovic wrote in an email to the Times. "I hope that the City of Tampa will take this as an opportunity to review their policies and make sure that all firefighters are treated fairly."
The judge's order was issued just hours after Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn said the city would appeal the verdict—a decision which has to be made official within 30 days.
"We are appealing this with valid legal reasons," the mayor said. "I'm sure there are folks in every department that say and do stupid things, but for the most part these are good employees."
Vidovic first spoke out about problems facing Tampa's female firefighters in 2015 and filed her lawsuit on March 23, 2016, before being fired the next day.
At the trial that began in November, a jury found that the city had discriminated against Vidovic because she was pregnant and then retaliated against her for complaining.
