EEOC Sues Elaine’s Pet Resorts and Elaine’s Animal House for Disability Discrimination

FRESNO, Calif. – Elaine’s Pet Resort, LP and Elaine’s Animal House Inc. (collectively, “Elaine’s Pet”), who operate pet resorts in Fresno and Madera, California, violated federal law by failing to provide reasonable accommodation to a class of applicants and employees, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the EEOC, since at least 2021, Elaine’s Pet failed to engage in the interactive process and provide a reasonable accommodation to a class of applicants and employees with disabilities whose post-offer drug tests came back positive. The EEOC alleges that Elaine’s Pet failed to engage in the interactive process that would have determined that the medication was legally prescribed and instead took negative employment actions against their applicants or employees.

Such alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits employers from discriminating against workers due to their disabilities. The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of California (EEOC v. Elaine’s Pet Resort, LP et al., Case No. Case No.: 1:23-at-00845), after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The EEOC seeks monetary damages for the aggrieved individuals, including compensatory and punitive damages, along with injunctive relief against the company to prevent such unlawful conduct in the future.

“Disability discrimination remains one of the most common allegations in discrimination charges filed with the EEOC,” said Anna Park, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Los Angeles District Office, whose jurisdiction includes Fresno. “Employers need to understand their obligation to engage in the interactive process in order to best assess what reasonable accommodations could be provided to the employee or applicant.”

Armando Hernandez, director of the EEOC’s Fresno Local Office, said, “Even though the Americans with Disabilities Act was enacted over 30 years ago, employers still have ongoing issues understanding their responsi­bilities under this statute. Failing to engage in the interactive process leads employers to make decisions without all the necessary information, which can result in a violation of the law.”

For more information on disability discrimination, including failure to hire and failure to provide reasonable accommodation, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc-disability-related-resources.

If you believe you have been discriminated against at work, please contact the EEOC at 800-669-4000.

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.