Free Memorandum in Opposition - District Court of Delaware - Delaware

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Case1:06-cv-00027-SLR Document 56-8 Filed 05/23/2007 Page1 0f4

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IN THE UNI'I`l ED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
EIISTRICT OF DELAWARE
d;)
Plaintiff, i Case No. 06-027
v. i JURY TRIAL DEMANDED
EXPRESS, LLC, afkfal i
LIMITED BRANDS, INC. )
Defendant. i
.§g[10N DF DARIA CAR.I’§_NfIfQ
I, Daria Carpenter, dr hereby aflirm and solemnly declare pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §
1746:
l. I am over lit years of age and if called to testify at trial would be
competent to testify as to the matters set forth below.
2. I began working for Express in the early snrmner of 2003 as a sales
associate at the Christiana Mall in Newark, Delaware. Paula Pagonakis, the Plaintiff in
the captioned matter, interviewed for, and hired me into, my position as a sales associate
with Express. Paula and I worked together for Express at the Christiana Mall from the
time I started working for Ilxpress until Paula‘s employment was terminated in Marsh
2004.
3. Although Ex press purported to promote Paula into the position of
Assistant Manager around the time I started working at the Christiana Mall store in the
summer of 2003, nobody trained Paula for the position of Assistant Manager and Pau1a’s
supervisors did not provide her with the tools and training necessary to perform the
timetions of an Assistant Manager. Nor was Paula heated the same as other Assistant

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Managers or given the same responsibility as other Assistant Managers. For example,
Paula’s supervisors did not provide Paula with a key to the cash registers at, or to the
door of, the Christiana Mall store. Accordingly, Paula was unable to “open" the store in
the mornings - unlike the other Assistant Managers. Similarly, Paula was never trained
on the cash registers, tmlike o ther Assistant Managers.
4. When I startei working at the Christiana Mall store in the summer of
2003, Paula’s supervisors allowed her to take periodic breaks, including lunch breaks, as
an accommodation for her `-mown disabilities and medical conditions. Additionally,
Paula’s supervisors only sche iuled her for daylight hours and did not assign her tasks that
called for elirnhing (such as having to slime to place or fold jeans on high shelves at the
store), as an aocomtnodatio:1 for Paula"s known disabilities and medical conditions.
Paula was also scheduled for 1 day off every three to four days.
5. Starting in fal of 2003 and continuing through the winter of 2003 into
early 2004, P’aula’s supervi tors stopped accommodating her known disabilities and
medical conditions. For exrmple, as time went on, Pau1a’s supervisors, among other
I things: (a) scheduled Pauli to work aftemoon/evening shifts; (b) stopped holding
managers meetings in the rnomings and moved those meetings to evening hours; (o)
started to assign Paula tasks hat involved climbing; and (d) did not allow Paula to take
breaks that she had previously been allowed to take when she was at work. Some days,
Paula’s supervisors did not ev en allow her to take a lunch break. Paula’s supervisors also
began to assign her to work zive to six days in a row, even though they had previously
accommodated her by allowin g her to take a day offhom work ever three to four days.

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6. Paula’s superv sors also started to treat Paula in a disparaging and hostile
manner in the fall and winter if 2003, including making rude eonunents to her in front of
myself and other employees. During this time period, one ofthe Christiana Store’s Co-
Managets, Elise O’Neill, Wl iuld yell at me and ehastise me whenever she saw me
spealdng with Paula. Ms. O' Neill made it very clear to me fiom her words and actions
I that she did not want me s seeking with Paula. Ms. O’Neill also made dispamging
comments to Paula during th s time period. It is my tirm belief that Paula’s supervisors
treated her unfairly. l don`; understand why this is, because Paula was an excellent
employee whom I respected 2 nd enjoyed working with and for. n
Executed thiékg day of February 2007 at Washington, D.C.
Daria Carpenter Ig