Lawsuit: Carpentersville HR manager fired for probing 'vulgar' remarks by village president
Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of John Skillman's name.
Carpentersville's former human resources director has sued the village, arguing he was fired in retaliation for investigating "numerous vulgar, gender specific remarks" made by Village President John Skillman in front of the female village clerk in 2017.
Jeffrey Monteleone seeks more than $300,000 damages from the village and argues the new village manager set out to "whitewash" Monteleone's report and asked him to sign an affidavit that was false.
The lawsuit, filed last week in federal court, contends Monteleone's civil rights were violated when he was fired on April 6, 2018, after he refused to sign a separation agreement with the village along with a sworn statement that the former village manager, Mark Rooney, had resigned from his post instead of being fired.
"(Monteleone) was fired in retaliation for investigating and opposing a sex-based harassment and hostile work environment, refusing to sign a false affidavit and refusing to falsify the findings of his own report of alleged sex-based harassment and hostile work environment," read part of the lawsuit.
According to the lawsuit, Monteleone was notified in August 2017 that Skillman made the alleged vulgar comments about a trustee and another trustee's spouse in front of another female employee. The lawsuit did not specify the exact language of the alleged comments.
Monteleone investigated and later recommended that Skillman be censured by the village board and apologize to Village Clerk Kelly Mastera, read part of the suit. Rooney asked Skillman to apologize, but Skillman instead vowed to have Rooney fired after Skillman got enough votes on the village board, according to the suit.
In December 2017, Skillman appointed "allies as replacements" on the board and moved to fire Rooney, the suit argues. However, according to the suit, Rooney refused to resign and his employment was eventually terminated in January 2018.
According to the suit, after Rooney was fired, the new village attorney, Brad Stewart, set out to "effectively and literally whitewash" Monteleone's report and Stewart created his own report to act as a legal defense against a lawsuit from Rooney.
Monteleone, the suit contends, was fired in April 2018 after he refused to retract his initial report about Skillman's comments and refused to sign an affidavit that stated Rooney left his post on his own.
Monteleone's attorney, Patrick Walsh, declined to comment on the case.
Messages left at Carpentersville village hall for Skillman and the village manager Tuesday were not returned.
The next court date for Monteleone's lawsuit was not immediately available.
Rooney also has sued the village and the two sides are next due in Kane County court on Sept. 25; Walsh also is representing Rooney in his lawsuit against the village.