Woman Fired by Alpha Beta Co. Awarded $136,501

A 61-year-old Whittier woman won a $136,501 verdict Monday from an Orange County jury that found she had been fired without cause by Alpha Beta Co.

Helen Dodge was fired three years ago from her job as a liability claims representative. She had worked for 10 years at the firm’s La Habra corporate headquarters.

The jury, sitting before Superior Court Judge Richard W. Luesebrink, gave Dodge $36,500 for lost wages, $100,000 for emotional distress and $1 in punitive damages.

Dodge’s attorney, William M. Crosby, alleged that his client was fired without just cause seven years before retirement. Crosby said the jury found that the firm failed to deal with Dodge fairly or in good faith.

Alpha Beta attorney Howard Hay said the firm was considering an appeal. “The company believed it had a legitimate reason to terminate her, based on her manner of dealing with employees, supervisors and customers,� Hay said.

Crosby said Dodge received “good performance ratings� until the last two years of her employment, when a new boss accused her of insubordination.

Dodge, who has one son and is separated from her husband, now works part time as a secretary. She was making $28,000 a year when she was discharged by the supermarket chain.

A psychiatrist testified during the two-week trial that after she was fired, Dodge suffered from a temporary but acute paranoid personality disorder, Crosby said.