Debbie Stevens, a 47-year-old mother from Long Island, made the ultimate sacrifice for her boss Jackie Brucia who needed a kidney transplant. Even though Debbie wasn’t a perfect match, she donated her kidney to a stranger in Missouri, setting off a transplant chain that allowed her boss to receive a compatible kidney from a donor in San Francisco.
Debbie literally saved her boss’s life through this selfless act. But after her surgery on August 10, 2011, Debbie’s health suffered. She experienced abdominal pain, digestive problems, and needed frequent breaks to recover.
When she returned to work just four weeks later, instead of gratitude, she faced hostility. Her boss – the same woman whose life she helped save – accused her of “taking too long” to recover, screamed at her over things she hadn’t done, and eventually demoted her.
In April 2012, eight months after donating a kidney that saved her boss’s life, Debbie was fired. The New York State Division on Human Rights found “probable cause” that she was discriminated against for her medical condition. The case was settled in 2014, but the damage was done.
Debbie’s story became a shocking example of workplace retaliation after an act of pure selflessness. She gave up part of her body to save someone’s life, only to lose her job and face discrimination during her recovery. Some acts of kindness reveal exactly who people really are – both the giver and the receiver.
