Colorado construction firm settles disability discrimination lawsuit
A Colorado construction company will pay $42,500 and furnish other relief to settle a disability discrimination suit brought by a federal agency, according to a news release.
Gollnick Construction Inc., which does business as Colorado Excavating, was sued by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission after a worker was fired by the company just four days after suffering a seizure at work, the EEOC said in a Tuesday news release.
When office assistant Dora Marquez was fired, the company “failed to engage in the required interactive process to discuss potential accommodations,” the federal agency said.
Colorado Excavating was also charged with “record keeping and confidentiality violations by not keeping medical information in separate medical files and by shredding employment applications,” the news release said.
After first trying to settle through a conciliation process, the EEOC filed suit, in federal court in Denver, claiming such conduct violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.
“The three-year consent decree settling the lawsuit requires annual training for all employees, management officials, and human resources personnel with an emphasis on disability discrimination and the interactive process,” the news release said.
“The first annual training will include a component of Epilepsy 101 training provided by the Epilepsy Foundation of Colorado.”
The settlement requires periodic reports to the EEOC of all internal disability discrimination complaints.
The $42,500 includes back pay and compensatory damages.
“Far too often, people with seizure disorders are denied employment opportunities because of myths and fears about their condition,” Mary Jo O’Neill, a regional attorney with the EEOC, said in the news release.
“As this case shows, employment decisions should not be driven by stereotypes and fears about people with epilepsy.”
The unemployment rate for people with epilepsy is two to three times that of the general public, according to the news release. People with epilepsy who are employed are likely to be underemployed or earn less than workers who do not have epilepsy.