Woman Donates Kidney to Boss, Then Gets Fired

Debbie Stevens, 47, agreed to donate one of her kidneys to her boss, Jackie Brucia, 61, who was in need of an organ transplant. Stevens and Brucia had a meeting in 2010 after Stevens left Brucia’s employ during which Stevens agreed to be a possible kidney donor for Brucia. Not long after leaving her job with Brucia, Stevens asked for her job back and began working for Brucia within weeks.

Two months after resuming her employment, Brucia reminded Stevens of her earlier offer to be a possible kidney donor. Stevens agreed to donate a kidney after it was discovered that she was an ideal match for Brucia. Steven’s willingness to donate placed Brucia higher on the organ donor waiting list which allowed her to find another matching donor. In the end, Brucia received a kidney from a donor in San Fransico and Steven’s kidney went to a man in St. Louis, Mo.

Stevens claims she felt pressure to return to work less than a month after the surgery, while Brucia continued to recuperate at home. Stevens claims that Brucia became quite upset after Stevens went home early three days after returning to work, claiming other employees would believe Stevens was receiving special treatment. Stevens was eventually fired from her job and subsequently filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission and pursued a court challenge for her dismissal. While Stevens is upset about losing her job, she does not regret donating her kidney. Stevens said, “I have no regrets [that] I donated a kidney because it saved the life of a man in Missouri.”

See David Schepp, N.Y. Workers Claims She Was Fired After Donating Kidney For Boss, Apr. 23, 2012. 

Special thanks to David S. Luber (Attorney at law, Florida Probate Attorney Wills and Estates Law Firm) for bringing this article to my attention.