Children's Hospital Los Angeles Sued Over Claims Of Freon Mishap

HOLLYWOOD, CA — A former mechanic has sued Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, claiming he was wrongfully fired after reporting the mishandling of the harmful refrigerant Freon by another coworker.

The production and import of Freon was banned in 2020 by the Environmental Protection Agency as part of an effort to phase out hydrochlorofluorocarbon, also known as HCFC. Studies have shown that HCFCs deplete the ozone layer, and contribute to climate change.

Wisam Khalel was hired on May 4, 2020 as a refrigeration mechanic, according to the lawsuit. While replacing an air conditioner part with his supervisor and a senior mechanic, he says the other mechanic opened that allowed large amounts of Freon to escape.

Khalel says he quickly spoke up, as federal law forbids the refrigerant from being released into the environment. According to the lawsuit, however, the supervisor told Khalel "who cares, we need to get the job done."

The former mechanic says he later reported the incident to the engineering department manager, who told him to keep working. Soon after he had told the manager, Khalel says his supervisor and the other mechanic became hostile to him.

Khalel says he later tried to apologize to the department manager due to the isolation. According to the suit, the manager told him to "just forget about everything and keep working because there is lots of work to be done."

The former mechanic says he was later told in October that his probationary job performance was unsatisfactory, and that he was eventually fired on October 30.

Children's Hospital refused to comment on the lawsuit in a statement released Sunday.

"Due to circumstances of the litigation, CHLA is unable to share details about the case publicly," the statement read.

The production and import of Freon was banned in 2020 by the Environmental Protection Agency as part of an effort to phase out hydrochlorofluorocarbon, also known as HCFC. Studies have shown that HCFCs deplete the ozone layer, and contribute to climate change.

City News Service contributed to this report.