Patti's Blog - Advocate for Elders, People with Disabilities and Their Families

Turkey Plant Ordered To Pay Mentally Disabled Workers $240M After Years Of Awful Conditions

Excerpt from: Consumerist (click for full article)

 

An Iowa jury recently handed down what could be the largest verdict in the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s history, including a judge’s order that a turkey plant must pay 32 mentally disabled men $240 million. The jury found that Henry’s Turkey Service had violated the Americans with Disabilities Act in paying the workers $0.41 an hour while reportedly making them live in awful conditions and subjecting them to physical abuse and neglect.

After four years of working on the case, the EEOC attorney and the families of the men laid out five days of testimony about the working and living conditions the workers endured, reports the Quad City Times. The judge awarded each of the 32 workers $7.5 million for emotional and punitive damages.

“For the first time since 2009, the public, as represented by the jury, not only got to hear the whole story about these men, but fully understood the depth of the human experience they suffered,” said EEOC attorney Robert Canino.

EEOC Sues Florida Hospital for Discriminating Against Doctor with Epilepsy

Excerpt from: Disability Law (click for full article)

 

Baptist Health South Florida, a Miami-based hospital system, violated federal law when it refused a reasonable scheduling request from a newly hired physician with epilepsy at its Doctor's Hospital location in Coral Gables, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today. 

According to the EEOC's suit, a new hire, Dr. Lianette Campos-Sackley, applied for a position at Doctor's Hospital's Gamma Knife Center as a general medical practitioner under the direction of Dr. Aizik Wolf. During her initial interview with Dr. Wolf, Dr. Campos-Sackley notified him that she had epilepsy, which required her to not exceed an eight-hour work day. Dr. Wolf agreed to Dr. Campos-Sackley's scheduling request and, after she interviewed with other members of the Doctor's Hospital staff, she was ultimately hired.

However, as soon as she began working, Dr. Wolf altered the pre-determined schedule and demanded that Dr. Campos-Sackley work additional hours, which caused her health to rapidly deteriorate. Dr. Campos-Sackley consulted with hospital management and renewed her request for a reasonable accommodation in the form of a modified work schedule, but the request was denied. Within a few days, Dr. Campos-Sackley was terminated.

EEOC to argue that disabled workers at Iowa turkey plant were abused and deserve damages

Excerpt from: The Washington Post (click for full article)

 

A now-defunct Texas company that put mentally disabled men to work at an Iowa turkey plant for decades is due in court to defend itself against allegations that it subjected the men to physical and verbal abuse.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is suing Henry’s Turkey Service, of Goldthwaite, Texas, on behalf of 32 former workers whom it housed and oversaw while they worked at West Liberty Foods in West Liberty, Iowa. The commission is expected to seek unspecified compensatory and punitive damages against Henry’s for allegedly subjecting the men to abuse that “created an atmosphere of fear and intimidation,” court filings show.

Walmart Accused Of Violating Disabilities Act

Excerpt from: Disability Scoop (click for full article)

 

Federal regulators are suing Walmart for allegedly looking the other way while an employee with developmental disabilities was sexually harassed by a co-worker for years.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission brought the suit on behalf of Jamie Wells who has developmental disabilities and worked at an Akron, Ohio Walmart for more than 11 years.

A male co-worker subjected Wells to sexual harassment and inappropriate touching at the store between 2005 and 2011, according to the complaint filed in federal court. Even though managers were aware of the harassment, they did not take appropriate action, the EEOC said. What’s more, the suit indicates that Wells was fired three weeks after she complained about the conduct.

The EEOC is accusing the retail giant of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Civil Rights Act and is seeking compensatory and punitive damages in addition to lost wages and benefits.

What defines a medical inquiry?

Excerpt from: NWI.com (click for full article)

 

One given principle of the Americans With Disabilities Act provides that employee medical information obtained from “medical examinations and inquiries” must be treated as a confidential medical record. The issue is what is an inquiry?

Consider these facts: an employee failed to report to work. The employer sent the employee an email, asking him what he was doing. The employee replied with an email stating he had a severe migraine.

Shortly thereafter, the employee quit his job. Future employers contacted the former employer and asked for a reference. The former employer responded by saying that the ex-employee had “medical conditions” involving migraines, but that this wasn’t an issue in his job performance.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit against the former employer, claiming that its disclosure of the medical condition was a per se violation of the ADA. The employer defended by arguing that its receipt of the employee’s medical information, in the email the employee initiated, was not obtained from a medical inquiry.

The court ruled for the employer. It rejected the EEOC’s argument that any communication between an employer and an employee, initiated by the employer, which results in the disclosure of medical information is an “inquiry.”

Ex-Angel Fire employee files discrimination charge

Excerpt from: Sangre de Cristo Chronicle (click for full article)

 

In a discrimination charge filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Deborah Bredthauer alleged that she was treated differently because of her white race and disability while working for the village of Angel Fire.

“During my employment, I was denied time off to attend physical therapy and I was treated differently than Hispanic employees who were allowed to take time off work for any reason,” Bredthauer stated in the charge. “I attempted to complain internally about the discrimination but nothing happened and I was later retaliated against by not being allowed to attend a training session and by being isolated at work.”

Bredthauer filed the charge under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act on Nov. 1, 2012, and her attorney Katherine Ferlic of Santa Fe said mediation took place on March 27.

Ferlic said the specifics of the mediation are confidential, but “I can say that Ms. Bredthauer does plan on filing suit as soon as her administrative options are exhausted.”

EEOC Sues Toys "R" Us for Discriminating Against Deaf Applicant

Excerpt from: Disability Law (click for full article)

 

Toys "R" Us, Inc., one of the world's largest retailers of toys and juvenile products, violated federal law when it first refused to provide an interpreter for a deaf applicant and then failed to hire her, the U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it announced today.

The EEOC charged that Shakirra Thomas, who is deaf, applied for a team member position at the retailer's Columbia, Md., store in October 2011. Thomas communicates by using American Sign Language, reading lips and through written word. When the company contacted Thomas to attend a group interview, Thomas' mother advised that Thomas was deaf and requested the company to provide an interpreter for the interview. The retailer refused and said that if Thomas wished to attend a group interview in November 2011, then she would have to provide her own interpreter, the EEOC alleges.

Thomas's mother interpreted for her during a group interview, but the company refused to hire Thomas despite her qualifications for and ability to perform the team member position, with or without a reasonable accommodation, the EEOC said in its lawsuit.

EEOC Sues Toys “R” Us for Disability Discrimination

Excerpt from: U.S. EEOC (click for full article)

 

Toys "R" Us, Inc., one of the world's largest retailers of toys and juvenile products, violated federal  law when it first refused to provide an interpreter for a deaf applicant and  then failed to hire her, the U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission  (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it announced today.  

The EEOC charged that Shakirra  Thomas, who is deaf, applied for a team member position at the retailer's  Columbia, Md., store in October 2011.   Thomas communicates by using American Sign Language, reading lips and  through written word.  When the company  contacted Thomas to attend a group interview, Thomas' mother advised that  Thomas was deaf and requested the company to provide an interpreter for the  interview.  The retailer refused and said  that if Thomas wished to attend a group interview in November 2011, then she  would have to provide her own interpreter, the EEOC alleges.

Positive Outlooks for Workers with Disabilities Positive Outlooks for Workers with Disabilities

Excerpt from: Disability Blog (click for full article)

 

t seems that news about employment of people with disabilities is often bleak. Earlier this month it was reported that unemployment numbers for people with disabilities are on the rise, jumping from 11.7 percent at the close of 2012 to 13.7 percent at the end of January 2013. This increase came despite no significant rise in unemployment in the general population.

Accusations of job discrimination based on disability are also climbing, with 26,379 claims filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 2012. That is highest number on record, and a statistic that has risen every year since 2005. Whether job-based discrimination is actually increasing or vigilance in reporting is simply improving, these reports are discouraging to people with disabilities and the population as a whole.

But there is good news, too. The job market is becoming more flexible for all workers, which benefits people with disabilities. In many ways, the workplace struggles of employees and job-seekers with disabilities are reflective of larger cultural issues and as a result, greater attention is being paid to the issues.

LAWSUIT CLAIMS MARRIOTT DISCRIMINATES AGAINST BLIND EMPLOYEES CLASS ACTION SEEKS EQUAL ACCESS TO PROMOTIONS, COMPUTER SOFTWARE

Excerpt from: The Legal Aid Society (click for full article)

 

Today, the Legal Aid Society – Employment Law Center (LAS-ELC) and TRE Legal filed a class action lawsuit in federal court against Marriott, alleging that the hotel giant discriminates against blind and disabled employees by requiring its managers to use inaccessible computer software and rejecting accessible alternatives.

Ali Faraj is a blind Marriott employee who has been excluded from advancement to a management position with Marriott based on the hotel chain’s requirement that managers use a Sales Force Automation (SFA) software program by the Oracle Corporation called Siebel CRM (Customer Relation Management). Despite requests, Marriott has refused to configure or modify its SFA software so that disabled persons such as Mr. Faraj who use screen-reading software can serve as managers.