BY SUSAN WARE

Attorney B.J. Branch filed a petition in Merrimack Superior Court on Tuesday, June 26, asking a judge to declare the terminations of Joanne Drewniak and Jessica Skorupski unlawful.

“What my clients want is for the court to declare the terminations unlawful and to decide appropriate remediation.

They want reinstatement, at least on paper. What happens after that remains to be seen,” said Branch.

According to Branch, remediation could include back pay, legal fees, lost time for pension vesting and other out-of-pocket expenses, plus damages.

Branch also plans to challenge the Town Council’s decision to return a citizen’s initiative petition demanding that the four former employees be given their jobs back.

Drewniak and Skorupski are two of what the media has dubbed “Hooksett Four.” They were fired by the Hooksett Town Council without warning on April 11 for gossiping about Town Administrator David Jodoin.

Sandra Piper, Michelle Bonsteel, Skorupski and Drewniak have 46 years of town service between them.  They don’t deny claims that they were discussing the rumor of an alleged relationship between the married Jodoin and another employee, or that Drewniak used a derogatory term to describe Jodoin.

The Town Council made the decision to terminate the longtime employees after receiving a fact-finding report written by an investigator who questioned two hall employees about whether they had been gossiping. The report recommended disciplinary action, but not termination.

Drewniak and Skorupski appealed to the Town Council to reverse their terminations. Their appeal was denied on May 25. Branch said at the time that litigation would follow, once Piper and Bonsteel had their hearing with council.

The hearing for Piper and Bonsteel has been canceled once and Branch said it is uncertain if it will be rescheduled.