News & Events

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.

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.

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.

The DBTAC-Great Lakes ADA Center conducted a poll to learn more about the opinions of people with disabilities, their family members and individuals who work with people with disabilities about how well the ADA is being implemented in their communities. Over 3500 individuals took the poll across all six states served by the Center. Overall respondents indicated that while they saw progress over the past 20 years, barriers to community participation and employment continue. Reports are available for Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin.

The Justice Department has published four new Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) proposals.  These advance notices of proposed rulemakings, published in the Federal Register on July 26, 2010, address the accessibility of websites, the provision of captioning and video description in movies shown in theaters, accessible equipment and furniture, and the ability of 9-1-1 centers to take text and video calls from individuals with disabilities. The Department invites written comments from members of the public. Written comments must be postmarked and electronic comments must be submitted on or before January 24, 2011.

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.

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.

The U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Education have sent a letter to colleges and universities about the use of electronic book readers that are not accessible to students who are blind or have low vision. The letter points out a serious problem with some of these devices that do not have an accessible text-to-speech function. Requiring use of an emerging technology in a classroom environment when that technology is inaccessible to an entire population of individuals with disabilities-individuals with visual disabilities-may constitute discrimination prohibited by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504). The letter can be downloaded in PDF format. Read the blog post on this from Kareem Dale, Special Assistant to the President for Disability Policy.

These remarks by Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez were released by the U.S. Department of Justice. For more information about the department's work in enforcing the American's with Disabilities Act (ADA) visit the website of the Civil Rights Division's Disability Rights Section.

Jacqueline A. Berrien, the former Associate Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, has been sworn in as the Chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). She becomes the 14th Chair of the EEOC, which will celebrate the 45th anniversary of its founding in July. Shortly after being sworn in Berrien administered the oath of office to Chai Feldblum as a Commissioner of the EEOC.

This audio conference series is sponsored by the Great Lakes ADA Center and provides in-depth information on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The program is designed to increase knowledge of regulations and trends under the ADA. Upcoming audio conferences will cover the use of service animals, older workers with disabilities and conducting effective accessibility surveys.