Significant Disability Discrimination Litigation Filed or Resolved: July 2013-July 24, 2014

Failure to Hire

Resolved

• EEOC reached a $75,000 settlement with Osceola Community Hospital (doing business as Bright Beginnings of Osceola County) in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to hire a qualified applicant with cerebral palsy to work in its daycare center because of its unfounded fear that her disability rendered her unable to care for children.
• After a jury trial, EEOC received a $186,295 judgment against Beverage Distributors Company in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant rescinded an offer to hire a blind employee as a night warehouse loader after the company eliminated his previous position as a driver's helper.  The court also ordered the company to hire the employee as a night warehouse loader.
• EEOC reached a $35,000 settlement with Toys"R"Us in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant refused to hire a qualified deaf applicant and refused to accommodate her disability by providing an interpreter during her interview.
• EEOC reached a $130,000 settlement with Pace Solano in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant rescinded its offer to hire an applicant for an instructor position after discovering that the applicant has partial paralysis in her left hand. The applicant successfully completed defendant's pre-employment tests and had been cleared to do the job by defendant's own health provider.
• EEOC reached a $80,000 settlement with Professional Freezing Services in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant refused to hire a qualified applicant because he has prostate cancer.
• EEOC reached a $160,000 settlement with DynMcDermott Petroleum Operations Company in its ADEA and ADA lawsuit, alleging that defendant refused to hire a previously-employed applicant for a planner/scheduler position because of his age and his association with his wife, who has cancer.  Although the district court granted summary judgment against the EEOC, the Fifth Circuit reversed, holding that a genuine issue of material fact existed as to whether defendant's conduct constitutes disability and age discrimination.  On remand to the district court, the parties agreed to settle the matter via consent decree.
• In this ADA lawsuit, the court entered summary judgment in favor of the EEOC and plaintiff-intervenor Michael Matanic, finding that defendant American Tool & Mold violated the ADA by withdrawing a job offer based on an old back injury and surgery Matanic previously had.  The parties later stipulated that judgment should be entered in favor of the plaintiffs and damages should be awarded in the amount of $150,000.
• EEOC reached a $12,500 settlement with Weirton Medical Center in its ADA and ADEA lawsuit alleging that defendant refused to hire its line technician for a multi-craftsman position because of his age and because defendant regarded him as disabled due to a back impairment.

Pending

• EEOC's lawsuit against Genesis Healthcare and 84 Cold Hill Road Operations (doing business as Holly Manor Center Nursing Home) alleges that defendants rescinded an offer to hire a deaf applicant to work in its food services department after grilling him about his ability to communicate.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Maxim Healthcare Services alleges that defendant rescinded an offer to hire an applicant as a sitter/companion after it learned of his HIV-positive status in a required health status certification.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Wal-Mart Stores East alleges that defendant refused to hire and failed to accommodate an applicant with end-stage renal disease because she needed a drug testing method other than urinalysis.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Georgia Power Company alleges that defendant refused to hire a class of individuals and refused to allow certain employees to return to work after receiving treatment for their conditions based on its belief that the applicants and employees were not able to work because of their actual or perceived disabilities.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Parker Drilling Company alleges that defendant rescinded its offer to hire a highly-experienced oil rig worker after discovering that he lost sight in his left eye as a child.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Popeye's Chicken franchisee Famous Chicken of Shreveport alleges that defendant refused to hire an applicant because of his HIV-positive status.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Kmart alleges that defendant refused to hire an applicant with kidney failure and failed to accommodate his request for a form of drug testing other than urinalysis.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Hoeganaes Corporation alleges that defendant rescinded an offer to hire an applicant as a maintenance mechanic because the company regarded him as disabled even after a physician said that the applicant should be able to perform the job functions.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Bond Bros., Inc. and McPhee Electric Ltd. alleges that defendants refused to hire a qualified applicant as a carpenter because of his dyslexia and failed to explore possible accommodations for the applicant's disability.

Failure to Accommodate

Resolved

• EEOC reached a $1,350,000 settlement with Princeton Healthcare Systems in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant's fixed leave policy failed to consider leave as a reasonable accommodation in violation of the ADA.
• EEOC reached a $95,000 settlement with Regions Financial Corp. (doing business as Regions Bank) in its ADA and ADEA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate a branch manager who requested a demotion to a less stressful and demanding position because of her physical disability. The lawsuit further alleged that defendant fired the manager because of her age.
• EEOC reached a $47,500 settlement with Dolgencorp, LLC (doing business as Dollar General Store) in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate an employee with dyslexia w ho requested that portions of required computer tests be read to him. The lawsuit further alleged that defendant demoted the employee for refusing to take the tests without accommodation.
• EEOC reached a $57,500 settlement with Creative Networks in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate its deaf and hard of hearing employees by refusing to pay more than $200 for sign language interpreter services during the company's mandatory 24-hour pre-employment orientation and training program.
• EEOC reached a settlement with the Fort Worth Center of Rehabilitation in which the defendant agreed to pay $30,000 and furnish other relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit alleging that the defendant unlawfully failed to accommodate a disabled applicant with a kidney disorder.

Failure to Accommodate + Wrongful Termination

Resolved

• EEOC reached a $130,000 settlement in its ADA lawsuit against Time Warner Cable alleging that defendant failed to provide a cable tap auditor/investigator with a reasonable accommodation and discharged him because of his disability after an occupational injury to his right foot resulted in permanent restrictions on climbing.
• EEOC reached a $105,000 settlement in its ADA lawsuit against Continental Structural Plastics alleging that defendant discharged an employee from his hole punching position after not providing him with a reasonable accommodation for his disability, missing digits (nonparalytic orthopedic impairment).
• EEOC reached a $75,000 settlement with GGNSC Administrative Services in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant fired an employee after she requested extended leave to recover from knee surgery.
• EEOC reached a $135,000 settlement with Ryla Teleservices in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant fired a customer service representative rather than accommodate her requests for extended medical leave to treat her bipolar disorder and depression.
• EEOC reached a $25,000 settlement with Silvercrest Extended Care Facility in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant fired a certified nursing assistant because she failed to submit her request for medical leave for a back injury on its standardized form.
• EEOC reached a $215,000 settlement with Baptist Health South Florida in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate a general practitioner with epilepsy by reversing its decision to limit her workday to eight hours per day. The lawsuit further alleged that defendant fired the general practitioner because of her epilepsy.
• EEOC reached a $50,000 settlement with Henderson Nursing & Rehab Center in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate a cook who requested medical leave to undergo surgery to treat her breast cancer and instead fired her for failing to report to work.
• EEOC reached a $60,000 settlement with Mercy Hospice in Troy, Michigan, in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate and fired a nurse with multiple sclerosis by refusing to allow her to return from leave.
• EEOC reached a $40,000 settlement in its ADA lawsuit against Children's Hospital of Central California alleging that defendant failed to provide an employee with a reasonable accommodation and discharged her from her housekeeping position because of her intellectual and learning disabilities.
• EEOC reached a $20,000 settlement with Store Opening Solutions in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate and fired an employee with macular and myopic degeneration of the eyes.
• EEOC reached a $51,000 settlement with Camden Place Health & Rehab in Greensboro, North Carolina, in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate a certified nursing assistant with asthma by forcing her to supervise patients on their smoking breaks and firing her for refusing to do so.
• EEOC reached a $125,000 settlement with Caddell Construction Company in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate an employee who broke her leg on the job by refusing to construct a wheelchair ramp to enter the company's office and by refusing to allow her to use crutches and a walker. The lawsuit further alleged that the company fired the employee because of her requests for accommodation.
• EEOC reached a settlement with Ranir, LLC, in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate and fired a dental floss assembler with severe arthritis who requested to use a four-pronged cane on the manufacturing floor.
• EEOC reached a $90,500 settlement with Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate and fired an employee with postpartum depression by denying her request for leave time to resolve the condition despite such leave time being available under defendant's policies.
• EEOC reached a $100,000 settlement with Riviera Consulting & Management Consulting in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate a bookkeeper with retinitis pigmentosa and subsequently fired him because of his disability.
• EEOC reached a $53,000 settlement with Direct Optical in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate an optician with generalized anxiety disorder, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder by denying her request to bring her service dog to work. The complaint further alleged that defendant fired the optician because of her disability and because of her accommodation request.
• EEOC reached a settlement with House of Raeford Farms in which defendant agreed to pay approximately $52,000 along with other relief to settle an ADA lawsuit alleging that the defendant unlawfully failed to accommodate an employee with anemia and denied her request to work in a warmer environment, but rather sent her home until a doctor's note was received, and fired her a week later.  The lawsuit further alleged that the defendant unlawfully disclosed the employee's confidential medical history.
• EEOC reached a settlement with Lifecare Medical Services, Inc., in which defendant agreed to pay $72,500 and provide other relief in order to settle an ADA lawsuit alleging that the defendant fired and denied a reasonable accommodation request of an employee who has multiple sclerosis and had requested additional leave but instead was issued disciplinary actions and subsequently fired for absences related to his disability,

Pending

• EEOC's lawsuit against the Ford Motor Company alleges that defendant discriminated against a resale steel buyer with irritable bowel syndrome by refusing to allow her to telecommute to work from home and by firing her in retaliation for filing an EEOC charge. The district court granted summary judgment for Ford but the Sixth Circuit reversed, holding that a jury must decide whether the buyer's physical presence in the workplace was an essential function of her job.
• EEOC's lawsuit against EZEFLOW USA alleges that defendant failed to accommodate a U.S. Marine Corps veteran experiencing seizures caused by Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder by refusing to grant his request for six weeks leave per his neurologist's instructions. The complaint further alleges that defendant fired the veteran because of his disability.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Baywood Home Care in Minneapolis alleges that defendant failed to accommodate a housekeeping employee with fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis and instead fired her after two other employees reported observing her walking with a cane.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Nick's Restaurant and Sports Bar alleges that defendant fired a server because of her requests to accommodate her congenital achondroplasia dwarfism by allowing her to retrieve her drink tray from a lower shelf behind the bar rather than from the main wait station.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Providence Hospital in Washington, D.C. alleges that defendant fired a medical assistant and failed to accommodate her disability by insisting that she work without her cane and by refusing to reassign her to a vacant position she could perform.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Wal-Mart Stores of Texas alleges that defendant failed to accommodate a store manager with diabetes by refusing his request to be reassigned to a co-manager or assistant manager position after his diagnosis. The complaint further alleges that Wal-Mart subjected the manager to harassment and then fired him based on his age.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Paloma Blanca Health and Rehabilitation in Albuquerque alleges that defendant failed to accommodate an employee with diabetes and heart conditions by refusing his request to limit his work hours to eight per day and instead fired him while he was on approved leave and recovering from a heart attack.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Oakland Children's Hospital alleges that defendant failed to accommodate and fired an office associate by denying her request for additional medical leave after she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Saint Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, Florida, alleges that defendant fired and failed to accommodate a nurse's disability by refusing to grant her request to use a cane and by refusing to reassign her to a vacant position for which she was qualified.
• EEOC's lawsuit against CTI alleges that defendant fired and failed to accommodate an employee with a rare eye disease by refusing to grant her request for extended leave time.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Angel Medical Center in Franklin, North Carolina, alleges that defendant fired and failed to accommodate a registered nurse by refusing to grant her request for accommodations that would allow her to complete chemotherapy treatments for cancer while remaining a full-time employee.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Kaiser Permanente alleges that defendant failed to accommodate a food service worker with hydrocephalus by refusing to give him additional training time or to allow him to use a job coach to learn how to perform his duties even though a non-profit organization volunteered to cover the cost of the coach. The complaint further alleges that defendant fired the worker because of his disability.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Randall Ford in Fort Smith, Arkansas, alleges that defendant failed to accommodate its used car manager by refusing to allow him to use the company's golf cart after his spinal surgery. The complaint further alleges that defendant fired the manager because of his disability.
• EEOC's lawsuit against OhioHealth Corporation alleges that defendant failed to accommodate an employee with narcolepsy by refusing her request to be transferred to a day shift position for which she was qualified. The complaint further alleges that defendant fired the employee because of her disability.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Wal-Mart alleges that defendant fired an intellectually disabled employee at a Rockford, Illinois Wal-Mart store after it rescinded his workplace accommodation of giving written or printed job assignments to the employee.  The complaint further alleges that due to Wal-Mart's failure to provide reasonable accommodation, the employee was unlawfully terminated for alleged "performance issues."
• EEOC's lawsuit against Jamison Shaw Hairdressers alleges that defendant unlawfully refused to provide a disabled employee with a reasonable accommodation and then discharged the employee because of her disability and/or because she had requested a reasonable accommodation.  According to the EEOC's complaint, the employee's job duties as a stylist assistant required her to stand the majority of her work day (sometimes over ten hours a day), and she needed the mat to alleviate back pain she experienced as a result of her disabilities while standing for extending periods of time.
• EEOC's lawsuit against the Disability Network/Wayne County, Detroit alleges that defendant failed to reasonably accommodate and fired an employee who is deaf.  According to the EEOC's complaint, the employee requested TTY equipment, the ability to use a video phone, and the ability to use text messaging as a reasonable accommodation to perform his job.  The defendant failed to engage in the interactive process with the employee, and ultimately discharged him because of his disability.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Orion Energy Systems, Inc. alleges that defendant failed to accommodate and fired an employee because of his disability, after the employee made a request for an automatic door opener to allow him to enter and exit the workplace with his wheelchair.
• EEOC's lawsuit against AutoZone alleges that defendant unlawfully discriminated on the basis of disability when it implemented a nationwide attendance policy that failed to accommodate certain disability related absences.  According to the EEOC's complaint, AutoZone assessed employees nationwide "points" for absences, without permitting any general exception for disability-related absences.  As a result, qualified employees with disabilities with even modest numbers of disability-related absences were fired.  The complaint also claims that another employee was discharged in retaliation for objecting to the attendance policy and filing a charge with the EEOC.

Wrongful Termination

Resolved

• EEOC reached a $370,000 settlement in its Title VII/ADA/GINA lawsuit against Founders Pavilion, a nursing facility, alleging that defendant required a class of applicants to provide genetic information in response to questions about family and medical history. Defendant also terminated two individuals it regarded as disabled and terminated one employee after failing to provide her with a reasonable accommodation, and refused to hire one female, withdrew an offer of employment to another, and terminated a third because of pregnancy.
• EEOC reached a $25,000 settlement with Foodworks in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant screened applicants using disability-related questions during the hiring process and that defendant fired an employee who had an epileptic seizure at work despite his performing his job successfully and presenting medical documentation that he was capable of returning to his normal duties.
• EEOC reached a $180,000 settlement with Walgreens in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant fired an employee with Type II diabetes because of her disability after she ate a $1.39 bag of chips during a hypoglycemic attack in order to stabilize her blood sugar level.
• EEOC reached a $110,000 settlement with Norfolk Southern Railway Company in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant wrongfully terminated an employee with degenerative disc disease without first determining whether his medical condition actually affected his ability to perform the job.
• EEOC reached a $90,000 settlement with Christian Care Center of Johnson City, Inc., a Johnson City, Tennessee-based nursing home facility, in its ADA lawsuit alleging that the defendant fired one of its employees, a licensed practical nurse, immediately after learning that the employee has human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
• EEOC reached a $18,000 settlement with Just Sneakers, Inc. in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant discriminated against a legally blind sales clerk because of his disability, without discussion or consideration of any reasonable accommodation.

Pending

• EEOC's lawsuit against MPW Industrial Services alleges that defendant fired an employee after learning that he has a Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) unit in his lower back to treat his back impairment.  According to the EEOC's complaint, the company deemed the employee "not medically qualified" to work, even though he had no medical restrictions that would have prevented him from performing his Laborer job.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Pines of Clarkston, an operator of assisted living facilities in Clarkston, Michigan, alleges that defendant fired an administrator upon learning of her epilepsy.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Midwest Regional Medical Center alleges that defendant fired a nurse's aide undergoing cancer treatments for failure to report to work despite her supervisor's granting her approved leave to rest after her treatments.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Baldwin Supply alleges that defendant violated the ADA by not allowing an employee to return to work after he had a heart attack - even though the employee had been released by his doctor to return to work with no restrictions - and instead firing him because of his disability.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Dialysis Clinic, Inc. alleges that defendant fired a nurse after she was diagnosed with breast cancer and took medical leave for surgery and chemotherapy treatment, despite being approved to use medical leave and being cleared by her doctor to return to work without restrictions.  The EEOC alleges that the employee was told that she would have to reapply for open positions.  However, when she did apply over two months later, she was rejected.  Not long after, the company hired a newly licensed nurse.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Genesis Healthcare, LLC, d/b/a Mount Olive Care & Rehabilitation Center, alleges that defendant fired an employee after learning that she has a physical impairment that limits the use of the left side of her body.  According to the EEOC's complaint, shortly after she began working for Genesis Healthcare, her supervisor asked her what was wrong with her left arm.  The employee explained that she did not have the full use of her left arm, but that she was still able to perform her job duties.  Soon thereafter, the company fired her.

Discrimination Based on Perceived Disability

Resolved

• EEOC reached a $25,000 settlement with Rexnord Industries in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant fired an assembler because it regarded her as having a disability after two unrelated incidents that resulted in ambulance trips to the hospital.
• In this ADA lawsuit, the court entered summary judgment in favor of the EEOC and plaintiff-intervenor Michael Matanic, finding that defendant American Tool & Mold violated the ADA by withdrawing a job offer based on an old back injury and surgery Matanic previously had.  The parties later stipulated that judgment should be entered in favor of the plaintiffs and damages should be awarded in the amount of $150,000.

Pending

• EEOC's lawsuit against Kyklos Bearing International alleges that defendant fired an employee because it viewed her as being unable to perform her job due to medical restrictions related to her status as a cancer survivor.  

Harassment

Resolved

• EEOC reached a $60,000 settlement with Step Three in its ADA and Title VII lawsuit alleging that defendant subjected an employee to harassment based on her fertility treatments and terminated her because of her eventual pregnancy.

Pending

• EEOC's lawsuit against Benny Boyd Car Dealership in Lubbock, Texas, alleges that defendant subjected a general manager to a hostile work environment because of his multiple sclerosis.  The complaint further alleges that the company failed to promote the general manager to a partnership position despite a promise to do so in his contract because of his disability.  The EEOC also contends that as a result of continuing harassment and a substantial loss of compensation due to the denial of partnership, the general manager was forced to resign from the dealership.
• EEOC's lawsuit against Mont Brook alleges that defendant's president subjected an employee to harassment because of her disability as a stroke victim and unlawfully asked about her disability status without a job-related business need.  The court has denied the defendant's partial motion to dismiss the case.

Retaliation

Resolved

• EEOC reached a $180,000 settlement with Upper Chesapeake Health System in its ADA lawsuit alleging that defendant failed to accommodate, fired, and later refused to rehire a pulmonary function technologist because she requested accommodation and complained about discrimination.