08/29/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 08/29/2024 08:40
WASHINGTON -The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a trio of lawsuits in three different industries to enforce the Americans with Disabilities Act.
"The ADA has been the law of the land for nearly 35 years, but unfortunately many qualified individuals with disabilities still aren't getting the common-sense accommodations they need in order to do their jobs and be fully included in the workplace," said EEOC General Counsel Karla Gilbride. "The EEOC will continue to step in and enforce the law when inflexible employer policies or outdated stereotypes prevent disabled workers from reaching their full potential."
Today the EEOC filed:
"There's nothing chic-or legal-about denying employees with disabilities the use of an assistive device needed to perform their jobs where there is no undue hardship. This is the third ADA lawsuit the EEOC has filed in recent years against New York City hotel employers for allegedly refusing to provide the accommodation of the use of a seat or stool to guest-facing employees."
"Employers must be reminded that a reasonable accommodation is an adjustment or modification to the workplace that enables the employee to continue her work," said EEOC Regional Attorney Debra M. Lawrence. "Demoting the employee is an adverse employment action, not a reasonable accommodation."
"We believe Holsum could have accommodated this employee," said EEOC Trial Attorney Brandon Skates. "We intend to secure appropriate relief on her behalf and prevent anyone in the future from being harmed by the use of the policy in similar circumstances."
These companies' alleged conduct violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities. The EEOC filed suit after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process in each of the three cases.
Last fiscal year, the EEOC received more than 29,000 charges of disability discrimination, a 25-year high. For more information on disability discrimination, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc-disability-related-resources.
For more information on workplace accommodation options, see the Job Accommodation Network, a service of the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP).
The EEOC prevents and remedies unlawful employment discrimination and advances equal opportunity for all. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.