State Contractor to Pay $55,000  To Settle EEOC Disability Discrimination Suit

ACS and Alpha Rae Denied Reasonable Accommodation and Fired Employee With Known Physical Limitations, Federal Agency Charged

INDIANAPOLIS – Affiliated Computer Services, Inc. (ACS), the company under contract with the State of Indiana to operate many of Indiana's public benefits programs, will pay $55,000 to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

The EEOC had charged in its suit (Civil Action No. 1:11-cv-00015-PPS-RBC in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, Hammond Division) that ACS and Alpha Rae Personnel, Inc., the staffing firm that supports the company, violated federal law by refusing to accommodate an employee's known disabilities and by terminating her assignment to ACS instead.

Such conduct violates the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) and Title I of the Civil Rights Act of 1991. The EEOC filed suit after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement.

A consent decree agreed to by the EEOC, ACS and Alpha Rae and entered by the court requires that for the next three years ACS and Alpha Rae take action to track and respond appropriately to requests for accommodation, post and distribute a policy of non-discrimination, train its employees on non-discrimination and report to the EEOC on progress in this area.

"Although we recently celebrated the 20-year anniversary of the ADA, some employers still make the serious mistake of basing job placement decisions on a person's disabilities," said EEOC Regional Attorney Laurie Young. "This settlement will send a message to all employers that failure to reasonably accommodate disabilities will not be tolerated, and this agency will take all necessary steps to ensure compliance with equal employment opportunity laws."

The EEOC is responsible for enforcing federal laws against employment discrimination. Further information is available at www.eeoc.gov.