Former Missouri Public Safety employee suing for age discrimination

A former deputy director of the State Emergency Management Agency has sued the Missouri Department of Public Safety, which oversees the agency, for age discrimination.

Dawn Warren-Cook started with the department in 2007, working at the State Emergency Management Agency, according to court documents. She has filed a civil suit in Cole County Circuit Court.

Prior to being let go in February, Cook had no unsatisfactory performance evaluations. Around this time, as part of the change in administration with the election of a new governor, Cook was demoted from deputy director to logistics chief.

Ernie Rhodes, who is named as a defendant in the suit, was appointed SEMA director in February and allegedly, according to the suit, "treated Cook in a dismissive and disrespectful manner." Cook claims Rhodes failed to meet with her or answer her requests for information about issues related to her job.

Cook claims Rhodes treated women - particularly older and more experienced women - differently than male employees. For example, during a situation requiring a partial activation, Rhodes delayed the activation until a male leader was on call rather than let a female leader on call take charge, the lawsuit alleges.

Cook said she complained to human resources in March that she was being discriminated against but got no action, and in May, she was put on administrative leave without being told the basis for the action.

Prior to being put on leave, Cook said, she had concerns about an outside organization being employed to manage the SEMA Operations Center. She noted when large rainstorms occurred in April and May, causing major flooding, a change in communication methods resulted in delays and miscommunication. Instead of organizing efforts with local coordinators, the state sent response teams with no notice or understanding of the requests by local coordinators.

Cook claims Rhodes appeared to assume control over the flood incidents without a declaration by the governor. She added Rhodes and Todd Farley, who supervised Cook as logistics chief prior to her dismissal, wanted her and the logistics staff to procure 200,000 additional sandbags for the Black River Coliseum in Poplar Bluff. She claims she informed them the coliseum was being used as a shelter and didn't have the 2 acres needed to house the additional sand, but the order was given to send sandbags, which she claims wasted state funds.

After this, Cook said, she was publicly reprimanded. DPS investigated her claims of discrimination in June, and she was eventually told there was no evidence to support her claims.

A hearing on her administrative leave was held later that month, leading to her firing in July.

In her termination letter, Rhodes states Cook's "habits and dependability do not merit your continuance in service." Cook claims that was part of a pattern of discrimination against her for whistle-blowing regarding mismanagement and misuse of public funds.