BALTIMORE (Legal Newsline) — The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced April 6 that Capstone Logistics LLC, a manufacturing and distribution company with headquarters in Norcross, Georgia, will pay $50,000 after alleged federal disability discrimination.
"We are pleased that Capstone Logistics worked with us to reach an amicable settlement that offers monetary relief to the applicant and, equally important, provides significant and comprehensive policy changes and training that will protect all applicants and employees from disability discrimination,” EEOC regional attorney Debra M. Lawrence said in a statement.
According to the EEOC, a person who was deaf applied for a warehouse position at Capstone’s warehouse in Jessup, Maryland. When the applicant came in for an interview, the site manager purportedly canceled the appointment and told him the interview would be rescheduled to a time when human resources and an interpreter could be present. The manager, however, allegedly never rescheduled the interview and instead told the applicant there was no job that the applicant could perform safely.
"This settlement should remind all employers that any safety assessments must be based on objective, factual evidence regarding the individual's present ability to do the job, and that employers must also determine whether a reasonable accommodation will eliminate or reduce any such risk," Jamie R. Williamson, district director of EEOC's Philadelphia District Office, said in a statement.