Lawsuit claims culture of sex discrimination in Franklin County Fire & EMS Department

Female firefighters and paramedics face “a culture of sex-based discrimination” in Franklin County, a former captain in its Fire & EMS Department claims in a lawsuit.

Rena Clark Jennings, who became the department’s first female captain in 2021, alleges that she was forced to quit four years later, after making repeated — and unheeded — complaints about her treatment and that of other female employees.

“Multiple female subordinate employees confided in and reported to Ms. Jennings that they, too, had experienced hostility and discrimination on the basis of sex,” the lawsuit, filed Friday in Roanoke’s federal court, alleges.

The 21-page pleading cites a number of examples of what it calls a deep-seated and systemic pattern of discrimination and harassment.

In the fall of 2023, two female employees informed Jennings that an instructor in a fire academy class made sexually degrading comments, including called women firefighters “Ho’s.”

“We have a hose for the Ho’s,” the instructor allegedly said.

Jennings made complaints to her supervisors about that and other incidents, which were never addressed, the lawsuit states. The instructor and other individuals were not named as defendants in the lawsuit, which was filed against the Franklin County Department of Public Safety.

A call to the department Tuesday morning was not returned. In response to an email later in the day, Chief Mike Fowler said he had not heard about the lawsuit and referred questions to the county attorney, Jim Guynn of Salem. Guynn could not be reached.

Jennings was hired as a firefighter and paramedic in 2003 and received positive performance reviews through her 22-year tenure with the department.

She hit a “glass ceiling” in September 2020, when she sought a promotion to captain of the department’s operations division, according to the lawsuit.

After being recommended for the job by a five-person interview panel, Jennings heard nothing for the next five months. When Jennings asked then-Chief William Ferguson about the delay, he told her there was opposition to having the position filled by a woman, the lawsuit contends.

Ferguson, who has since retired and who also unsuccessfully ran for Franklin County Board of Supervisors last fall, ended up “reluctantly” making Jennings a captain.

The lawsuit alleges that from then on, Jennings faced resentment and resistance to her concerns, which caused her so much anxiety and loss of sleep that she decided to resign Feb. 28, 2025.

After making a stalking complaint against a volunteer department chief — who Jennings said had requested tracking data on her vehicle and asked about her whereabouts while on duty — she began to receive threats and intimidation, according to the lawsuit.

Fowler allegedly called Jennings a “failed leader” and told her: “Females in the Fire Department need to hold their own.” The lawsuit said county officials referred to Jennings as a “female supervisor,” a form of “gender-marking” that suggested she was an exception to the norm.

Shortly before she resigned, Jennings said, an inspirational T-shirt was issued to employees that bore the phrase “Fir Na Tine,” translated as Men of Fire. The shirt “further established the ingrained culture of discrimination against female employees,” the lawsuit states.

Jennings also complained of not being recognized for her accomplishments — which included being the department’s only female captain — when she left her job.

But the year before, Jennings was featured on the department’s Facebook page as part of Women’s History Month. Photographs of her and 10 other women, “who proudly serve our community as firefighters and paramedics,” appeared in the social media posts throughout the month.

Jennings’ lawsuit makes allegations of sexual discrimination, a hostile workplace and retaliation. She seeks an undisclosed amount in compensatory and punitive damages, as well as back pay and front pay.

Nationally, such lawsuits are not uncommon, according to a 2021 Associated Press story.

The National Fire Protection Association says that in 2020, about 9% of the country’s firefighters were women. And studies have shown that reports of discrimination and harassment are a key barrier to having more women in service, according to a 2019 report by the U.S. Fire Administration.

Jennings’ lawsuit does not say how many female firefighters are employed in Franklin County. Her attorney, employment law specialist Tommy Strelka of Roanoke, could not be reached Tuesday.