YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – A harassment and retaliation lawsuit filed against the Board of Trumbull County Commissioners by clerk Paula Vivoda-Klotz has been dismissed in federal court in Youngstown.
Vivoda-Klotz filed the lawsuit in June 2022 asking for lost wages and monetary damages alleging discrimination and retaliation. She said the actions happened after she took a leave of absence in 2020 and then wanted reduced work hours when she returned, but instead, her assistant clerk position was eliminated and she was demoted, according to the complaint.
Over a period of time between 2020 and 2021, Vivoda-Klotz said she was harassed by Trumbull County Commissioner Niki Frenchko and that Frenchko tried to manipulate her schedule and have her fired.
The Board of Commissioners denied all the allegations in their answer to the complaint and admitted that the realignment of staff at the office was under the recommendation of the human resources department and commissioners agreed, saying there was “no demotion ” and no reduction in salary.
Commissioners also admitted that Vivoda-Klotz was disciplined for leaving several boxes of documents unfiled, which had piled up “for many months” prior to her leave of absence, according to court documents.
Judge Benita Pearson dismissed the case Tuesday saying that through mediation, both sides had reached an agreement to settle all claims in the case. Details of the settlement were not disclosed in online court records, but all parties must file the agreement with the court before September 8 for approval.
Vivoda-Klotz is named in a lawsuit that is pending in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court filed March 2023 by Frenchko. In that case. Frenchko is alleging violations of the Open Meetings Act, saying that some county business was conducted outside of regular meetings and not documented on the record. That case has been sent to mediation. A hearing is scheduled for September 15.
