Spare Change: Teller Claims Heavy-Lifting Damage

A former teller is suing First Virginia Banks Inc. of Falls Church, claiming that she faces risky surgery because of her bosses' actions.

Nancy Hager charges in the lawsuit, filed Jan. 18, that around fall 1999 officials of the Wytheville branch ignored her doctor's instructions by making her lift heavy coin bags. That work caused sutures from prior abdominal surgery to tear, she says.

Her attorney, Terry N. Grimes, said $9.4 billion-asset First Virginia violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Mr. Grimes said Ms. Hager, 45, has not been fired but has not reported to work since November 1999. He called her employment status "uncertain."

The suit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke. Mr. Grimes said Ms. Hager is seeking damages to compensate her for lost wages and medical expenses.

The damages amount was not specified.

First Virginia, the state's largest banking organization, has not responded to the lawsuit; chief financial officer Richard F. Bowman said Thursday that the company had not been served with the complaint. He had no comment on the matter.

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