SAN DIEGO — San Diego based marketing firm InsideUp Inc, has agreed to pay $10,500 to settle a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleging the company fired an employee because of his chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma and emphysema.
In its lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, the EEOC said InsideUp violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The EEOC alleges an InsideUp employee, who worked as a marketing consultant and who had COPD, emphysema and asthma requested to work on the ground floor of an office building that had no elevator. The employee stated he could not walk up and down the stairs to his office due to his medical condition. According to the EEOC, InsideUp refused to accommodate the employee and fired him after he made the request.
"We commend InsideUp for resolving this complaint early and agreeing to put in place measures to help prevent future disability discrimination in its workplace," said Anna Park, regional attorney for the EEOC's Los Angeles District in a news release. "Small businesses should regularly review their policies and procedures to ensure that they are in compliance with the ADA."
The four-year consent decree that settles the suit also includes InsideUp agreeing to significant injunctive relief such as training and revising the company's anti-discrimination and retaliation policies. InsideUp must also track requests for reasonable accommodations and complaints of discrimination and retaliation as well as report to the EEOC regularly.