Enforcement Actions

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AirTran Fined for Violating Rules Protecting Air Travelers with Disabilities

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has assessed a civil penalty of $500,000 against AirTran Airways for violating rules protecting air travelers with disabilities.  The Air Carrier Access Act of 1986 requires airlines to provide assistance to passengers with disabilities in boarding and deplaning aircraft, including the use of wheelchairs, ramps, mechanical lifts or service personnel where needed. DOT found several violations of the requirement for boarding assistance.  In addition, the carrier’s complaint files showed that it frequently did not provide an adequate written response to complaints from passengers. 

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U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Sues Two Texas Energy Corporations for Disability Discrimination

The EEOC has filed two recent lawsuits to enforce the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  In a suit against ENGlobal Engineering, Inc., the EEOC claims that the company terminated an employee because he was disabled. The employee had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms two weeks after starting work. After taking medical leave, the employee gave the company a doctor’s note stating that he had clearance to return to work. Instead, ENGlobal falsely told him that his position was unavailable. In a suit against DynMcDermott, the company violated the ADA as well, when it refused to hire a job applicant because of his age and his wife’s cancer, which the company’s director assumed would interfere with his ability to do the job.

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AT&T to Settle Disability Discrimination Suit

AT&T Services, Inc. (AT&T) will pay a former employee $60,000 to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).  The EEOC’s lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas in Austin, charged that AT&T violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to hire an applicant as a cable splicer technician only because of his insulin use for type 2 diabetes.

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Architectural Barriers Act Enforcement

Information from Access Board, an independent federal agency, on enforcement of the Architectural Barriers Act.
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Axiom Staffing Will Pay $35,000 to Settle U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Disability Discrimination Suit

Two staffing agencies will pay $35,000 and provide equitable relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit. The EEOC charged Axiom Staffing Group, Inc., and Axiom Staffing Group of Virginia, Inc., with refusing to place an applicant because of a back impairment. The consent decree settling the lawsuit forbids Axiom Staffing Group of Virginia from engaging in any employment practice which discriminates on the basis of disability. Axiom also will provide additional training on the requirements of the Americans with Disability Act and post a notice regarding the resolution of the lawsuit.

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Department of Justice (DOJ) Disability Rights Section

Conducts enforcement, certification, regulatory, coordination and technical assistance activities required by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

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Department of Justice ADA Enforcement

Links to U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Status Reports, Settlements and ADA Briefs, as well as information on How to File Complaints, the ADA Mediation Program and the DOJ's Program to Monitor ADA Civil Litigation.

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Enforcement Guidance on Pre-employment Disability-Related Questions & Medical Examinations

This document provides the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) position under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on pre-employment disability-related questions and medical examinations.

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Enforcement Guidance on Workers' Compensation & the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Details the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) position on the interaction between Title I of the ADA and state workers' compensation laws.

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Enforcement Guidances & Related Documents

Chronological list of enforcement guidance, commission decisions and policy statements from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
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HHS Enforcement Activities & Results

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces civil rights laws that apply to recipients of federal financial assistance from HHS. These laws prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, age or sex. OCR also enforces Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act as it applies to state and local government health and social service agencies. For information about specific cases visit Recent Civil Rights Resolution Agreements.

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Index of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Settlement Agreements & Court Documents

U.S. Department of Justice settlement agreements indexed by state and alphabetically.

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Judge Orders State of Florida to Provide Community Services to Jacksonville Woman at Risk of Institutionalization

A U.S. District Court in Jacksonville has ruled that the state of Florida must provide Michele Haddad with services that will let her stay in her home. Haddad, who has quadriplegia from a motorcycle accident with a drunk driver in 2007, has successfully resided in the community since the accident, but is at risk of having to go to a nursing home due to changes in her caregiver situation. Haddad has been on the waiting list for Medicaid community-based waiver services for two years, and she told the state of her increased need for services. She was informed that community services would only be available if she was willing to enter a nursing home for 60 days. The court ordered the state to provide community-based services as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act's (ADA) integration mandate in Olmstead v. L.C.

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Nursing Center Agrees to Serve Patients Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights has announced an agreement with Ramapo Manor Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing (Ramapo) in Suffern, NY that will provide individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing equal access to its nursing and rehabilitation facility be provided interpretation services when necessary. Ramapo agreed to also no longer exclude anyone from its program based on the person's disability or need for an auxiliary aid or service, such as a sign language interpreter. For more information on accommodating the communications needs of people who are deaf or hard of hearing read Disability Resources for Effective Communication.

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Oracle Transcription to Pay $30,000 to Settle Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Disability Discrimination Suit

The Oracle Transcription Company, Inc. of Rockville, MD, will pay $30,000 and furnish substantial remedial relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the EEOC in 2006. The lawsuit involved an unlawful denial of a full-time job to a current employee who has multiple sclerosis. The charge also involved Oracle Transcription disseminating the employee's confidential medical information to third parties.
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Project Civic Access

Project Civic Access is a wide-ranging effort to make sure that counties, cities, towns, and villages comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by eliminating physical and communication barriers that prevent people with disabilities from participating fully in community life. Through this initiative the U.S. Department of Justice has worked with over 100 state and local governments to bring them into compliance with the ADA and, while doing so, identifying certain common problems. 

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Psychiatric Disabilities & the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): Enforcement Guidance

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidance on enforcing ADA provisions as they relate to psychiatric disabilities.

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Selected Enforcement Guidances & Other Policy Documents on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Portal to U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) regulations, guidelines, fact sheets, frequently asked questions and technical assistance manuals concerning the ADA.

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U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) Charges Chicago Architect, Developer with Failure to Build Apartments Accessible to Persons with Disabilities

HUD has filed housing discrimination charges filed against Hector Castillo, Hector Castillo Architects, Inc., and 914 W. Hubbard, Inc. for designing and building apartments that fail to meet the accessibility requirements of the Fair Housing Act. HUD's charge contends that their apartments are inaccessible to persons with disabilities.  The Fair Housing Act requires that multifamily housing built for first occupancy after March 13, 1991 contain accessible features for persons with disabilities.

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U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) Charges New York Apartment Management Company with Discriminating Against Child with Disabilities

HUD has charged a landlord in Albany, NY with violating the Fair Housing Act by denying a child with disabilities a reasonable accommodation and retaliating against her family. The Paulsen Development Company barred the child from using the apartment complex swimming pool by prohibiting her needed service animal from accompanying her. After her mother complained to HUD, the company refused to renew their lease.

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U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Reaches Settlement with National Owner of Gas Stations on ADA Claims

DOJ has announced a comprehensive settlement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with QuikTrip Corporation, a private company that owns and operates more than 550 gas stations, convenience stores, travel centers, and truck stops in the Midwest, South and Southwestern U.S. Under the consent decree QuikTrip will create a $1.5 million compensatory damages fund for individuals who were victims of discrimination based on disability, as well as take steps to make its stores accessible. DOJ opened the investigation because of complaints about inaccessible parking by two individuals with disabilities in the Omaha, NE area. The lawsuit alleges that the investigation showed a nationwide pattern of discrimination on the basis of disability. QuikTrip Corporation worked with DOJ to resolve the matter without active litigation. Visit ADA.gov for more information about the Americans with Disabilities Act and this case.

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U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Department Files Lawsuit for Disability-based Housing Discrimination in Louisville, KY

DOJ has filed a lawsuit against the owners, developers, architects and civil engineers of Park Place Apartments in Louisville, Kentucky. The lawsuit alleges that these apartments fail to provide accessible features required by the Fair Housing Act. Some of the design and construction discrimination includes units with interior doors that are too narrow for persons who use wheelchairs. Since 1991, federal law has required that new multi-family housing complexes with four or more units be built with certain accessible features. 

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U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Files Fair Housing Lawsuit Against Dalton Township, Michigan

DOJ has filed a lawsuit against Dalton Township, MI for violations of the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act.  Charges are that the township discriminated against persons with disabilities based on its treatment of a group home for persons recovering from drug and alcohol addiction and its failure to grant a reasonable accommodation or modification to the owner of the group home. The suit seeks a court order prohibiting future discrimination by the township and requiring the township to make a reasonable accommodation to permit the continued operation of Serenity Shores as a sober home for eight individuals and a resident manager.

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U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Files Lawsuit Against Arkansas Alleging Statewide Violations of the ADA

DOJ has filed a lawsuit alleging that the state of Arkansas is systemically violating the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). The complaint covers all six Arkansas Human Development Centers (HDCs) and the state's restrictions on services in integrated settings. DOJ is seeking to enforce the ADA's requirement that Arkansas provide services to individuals with disabilities in the most integrated settings appropriate to their needs.
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U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Reaches Settlement with Blockbuster Inc. under Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

DOJ has announced a settlement agreement under the ADA with Blockbuster Inc. to ensure equal access to its stores nationwide for individuals with disabilities who use service animals. The settlement agreement requires that Blockbuster develop policies to ensure that individuals with disabilities who use service animals have full and equal enjoyment of its goods, services and facilities. Some changes to be made under the agreement include Blockbuster giving all of their employees across the country comprehensive training in ADA laws and compliance, posting its service animal policy on its website and in its stores, as well as creating a toll-free ADA complaint line.
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U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Resolves Lawsuit Alleging Disability Discrimination by Ventura County, CA

DOJ has announced a resolution in a lawsuit filed against Ventura County, CA, alleging that the county violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. Ventura County refused to hire a qualified applicant because she is deaf and required reasonable accommodations. Ventura County will train supervisory personnel involved in hiring and promotion decisions to ensure that qualified applicants and employees who are deaf will be provided reasonable accommodations, including sign language interpreters, where necessary. Ventura County has also agreed to pay $45,000 in damages to the applicant who was discriminated against.
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U.S. Department of Justice Resolves Disability Discrimination Lawsuit against Fitchburg, Massachusetts Housing Authority

The Justice Department (DOJ) has reached an agreement on a lawsuit against the Fitchburg, Massachusetts Housing Authority and its executive director, Robert W. Hill. The lawsuit alleged that the Fitchburg Housing Authority and Hill violated the Fair Housing Act (FHA) by adopting and implementing policies that denied tenants with disabilities (other than mobility impairments) the opportunity to transfer between apartments within Fitchburg's public housing neighborhoods. The FHA requires equal access to housing for all persons with disabilities, not just those who are substantially limited in walking. The law prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability and familial status. Read more about DOJ's Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces.

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U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Enforcement Data Website

Learn about the work of five agencies that make up DOL's enforcement agencies. These agencies carry out and keep watch on the federal labor laws that protect workers' rights. Information about each agency's efforts is available. Try out the state, agency or industry code search features. Share your opinion of the website and what you would like to see there.

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U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Sues Princeton HealthCare System for Disability Discrimination

The EEOC charged Princeton HealthCare System, which operates a hospital and provides other health care services, with violating federal law by failing to reasonably accommodate the needs of its employees who needed medical leave. More than a dozen employees with disabilities who requested a leave of absence as a reasonable accommodation were denied leave and were fired by Princeton HealthCare. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Princeton HealthCare System) in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

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U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC): 20 Years of ADA Enforcement, 20 Significant Cases

Provides summaries of 20 significant Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) employment matters taken to court or resolved by the EEOC on behalf of people with disabilities. 

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U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) Settles Voter Registration Case with New York State for Violating Rights of Students with Disabilities

DOJ has announced a court-approved consent decree which resolves a 2004 lawsuit against New York State and its public university systems. The state failed to provide voter registration services at offices serving students with disabilities at public university and college campuses in the state. The lawsuit alleged that the state violated Section 7 of the National Voter Registration Act, which requires that voter registration services be provided at offices that provide state-funded programs for persons with disabilities. By the start of the 2010-2011 school year, disability services offices at each public university and college campus in the state will provide voter registration services to students with disabilities.

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