Ohio Pella Facility Facing Discrimination Lawsuit

While Pella corporate is celebrating 100 years in business, the company’s Troy, Ohio, manufacturing facility is facing allegations of discrimination from an employee who worked for the company in 2024. Over the course of his three-month employment at Pella Windows and Doors, Rasheik Cannon alleges he was a victim of racial discrimination, age discrimination, and disability discrimination. He filed a legal complaint on February 27, 2025, asking for a jury trial.

Cannon was hired in May 2024. He is a Black man in his mid-40s with diabetes. In the factual allegations section of his complaint, Cannon provides a chronological list of alleged incidents that led him to file the suit. In this section he states that when he informed a Human Resources representative of his diabetes, shortly after being hired, the representative “responded that she ‘did not care.’”

Cannon notes that his job was running a saw, which required additional training. The next incident in the factual allegations section mentions that during that training, the person providing the training—identified only as “the trainer”—“called plaintiff a racial slur in the presence of plaintiff’s team lead.” Both the trainer and the team lead, identified as Chris, are Caucasian. Neither was disciplined or reprimanded, Cannon alleges, though he states he was suspended for a week.

Cannon further states that, two months into his employment with Pella Windows and Doors in Ohio, he started taking a new diabetes medicine on the advice of his treating physician. The medicine, he says, caused him to use the bathroom more frequently but did not otherwise interfere with his ability to do his job.

The complaint then states that “Plaintiff’s team lead, Jennifer, noticed plaintiff’s frequent trips to the restroom and informed plaintiff he needed to use the restroom less frequently. Plaintiff informed Jennifer that he had a medical condition that necessitated his more frequent restroom breaks.” Cannon alleges that after giving him a verbal warning, Jennifer then went to her own supervisor, Tyler, and informed him of Cannon’s “frequent restroom breaks.” Shortly thereafter, Cannon claims that Tyler “removed Plaintiff from the saw operator position,” which resulted in him making less money per hour.

“Tyler gave the saw operator position to a non-disabled, Caucasian employee who was under the age of 40 with less experience than Plaintiff,” the complaint further states.

Cannon then applied to become a forklift operator, which would have increased his per-hour pay. Upon learning this, Tyler allegedly told Cannon that he (Tyler) would prevent him (Cannon) from getting the promotion, Cannon alleges. Cannon was denied the forklift operator position and then received a written warning restricting him from using the restroom after his break, he alleges.

According to the complaint, he was fired on August 29, 2024.

Throughout the factual allegations, Cannon—through his legal team—points out that the trainer, Chris, Jennifer, Tyler, and the employees who replaced him at the job, running a saw, were all Caucasian, younger than 40, and did not have a disability.

Cannon argues that he was qualified, “with or without reasonable accommodation to perform the essential functions,” for the positions he worked and for which he applied. He believes that he was denied the forklift job because of his age, and that his race and disability were contributing factors both to that, as well as what led to the “transferring” of his job duties to another employee.

Further, “As a result of defendant’s disparate treatment, plaintiff suffered an adverse employment action. As a result of defendant’s disparate treatment, plaintiff was treated differently than similarly situated employees without disabilities,” the complaint alleges.

Because of those actions and allegations, Cannon is asking for “all damages as provided by 42 USC § 12101, Ohio Title 4112, and common law including but not limited to emotional and physical distress, suffering, inconvenience, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, punitive damages, lost wages and income (including back pay and front pay), and other benefits to which he was entitled, an amount to be determined at trial.”