EEOC Sues CACI International and CACI Secured Transformations for Disability Discrimination

Government Contractors Fired Worker Because of Her Disability, Federal Agency Says

BALTIMORE - Arlington, Va.-based information technology company CACI International and its wholly owned Maryland subsidiary, CACI Secured Transform­ations, violated federal law when they refused to provide a reasonable accommodation to a systems administrator and fired her because of her disability, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commis­sion (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it announced today.

According to the suit, CACI hired a systems administrator to work on a government contract at its facility in Annapolis Junction, Md. She later went on approved medical leave after sustaining post-traumatic headaches and occipital neuralgia from a car accident. She performed her duties well when she returned to work, but experienced health problems about a month later when she was transferred to CACI's Fort Meade, Md., facility. The new location had a noisy, open-plan environment and increased her daily commute. These changes exacerbated her head injury and caused more frequent and severe headaches, the EEOC says.

CACI refused to transfer her back to the original work location as a reasonable accommodation. A few weeks later, the systems administrator learned that she had developed a cerebral aneurysm. The EEOC says CACI unlawfully fired her the same day she told her supervisor about her diagnosis.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits workplace discrimination based on disability. The ADA also requires employers to provide a reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities, unless it would pose an undue hardship. The EEOC filed its suit (EEOC v. CACI Secured Transformations, LLC and CACI International, Inc., Civil Action No. 1:19-cv-02693) in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, Baltimore Division after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.  

"Everyone suffers when employers make rash judgments and fail to provide reasonable accommodations, or, even worse, terminate a worker based on a disability," said EEOC Philadelphia District Director Jamie R. Williamson. "The worker is without a needed salary and the employer not only loses a good employee but may also face an EEOC investigation or lawsuit."  

EEOC Regional Attorney Debra M. Lawrence added, "This case is yet another example where a low-cost reasonable accommodation, in this case a transfer to a different location, could have kept a worker with a disability gainfully employed."

According to company information, CACI International Inc is an American multinational professional services and information technology company headquartered in Arlington, Va. CACI provides services to many branches of the federal government including defense, homeland security, intelligence, and healthcare. CACI Secured Transformations, LLC is a subsidiary of CACI International, Inc. and  provides information technology services to the intelligence community in Maryland.

The EEOC's Baltimore Field Office is one of four offices in the EEOC Philadelphia District Office, which has jurisdiction over Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, West Virginia and parts of New Jersey and Ohio. Attorneys in the EEOC Philadelphia District Office also prosecute discrimination cases in Washington, D.C. and parts of Virginia.

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.