Former employee sues Rice Energy over dismissal
An Upper St. Clair man who was fired by Rice Energy Inc. in October 2016 has filed a civil lawsuit against the Southpointe-based company in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh.
Kevin Wutherich claims in the suit he was dismissed for whistleblowing, and is alleging discrimination because of age and nationality. Attorney Daniel W. Ernsberger and the law firm Behrend and Ernsberger are representing him.
According to the suit, Rice, an oil and natural gas exploration and production company, hired Wutherich as director of completions in May 2015. While working there, the suit alleges, “he observed unfair business practices, abused interlocking interests, and other illegal practices” and reported them “to his supervisor Tunde Ajayi (vice president of completions), (chief operating officer) Toby Rice, and others” and “was terminated because of his whistleblowing.”
Wutherich’s suit alleges Rice retaliated against him in violation of the Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd-Frank acts, and discriminated against him because of his age and Canadian nationality.
At the time, according to the suit, Wutherich was 41 and a Canadian with a green card. The suit alleges his replacement was “an internal candidate who was 29 years old and an American citizen.”
EQT Corp. of Pittsburgh acquired Rice Energy in a deal completed late last year. Linda Robertson, spokeswoman for EQT, declined to comment about pending litigation.