A Galveston County woman is suing her former employer, a medical branch, alleging someone from the branch was sabotaging her chances of securing another job in the area.
Shelly Ann Matejka filed a lawsuit Aug. 5 in the Galveston County District Court against the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, alleging breach of contract.
According to the complaint, Matejka left employment with the defendant following a disputed legal claim she filed against the branch, for which she entered into a settlement agreement and release of claims in July 2014.
As part of the settlement agreement, the suit says, UT Medical Branch at Galveston agreed not to defame or disparage Matejka's personal or business reputation, practices, or conduct, and agreed to release only dates of employment and last position held to authorized requesters, as well as provide her a written neutral reference from its human resources department.
The lawsuit states Matejka applied for more than 100 positions in the area for which she was qualified, interviewed for approximately 50 positions, and sometimes was called back for subsequent interviews. However, the complaint states she was not offered any of the positions, and she became suspicious of sabotage from her former employer when the hiring process reached the verification stage.
The suit alleges a former co-worker/supervisor was indeed violating the settlement agreement terms by recommending to potential employers that she not be hired, an express breach of contract.
Matejka seeks damages between $100,000 and $200,000, plus court costs and attorney fees. She is represented by attorneys Robert L. Woods of The Woods Law Firm, and Marrick Armstrong of Armstrong Legal, both in Houston.
Galveston County District Court case number 15-cv-0807.