The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was formed with the intent of preventing employers from discriminating against employees with disabilities. The law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to disabled workers. Reasonable accommodations include allowing disabled workers to take necessary medical leave without fear of reprisal. Home improvement store Lowe’s has agreed to a settlement with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) after a lawsuit alleged that Lowe’s medical leave policies violated disability discrimination laws. Under the settlement, Lowe’s will pay mistreated workers $8.6 million and will adjust company policies to be compliant with the ADA.
The lawsuit had accused Lowe’s of violating the ADA by firing or failing to provide reasonable accommodations to workers whom exceeded allowed medical leaves of absence. According to the EEOC, any company with a policy of firing workers with disabilities after a medical leaves of absence reach an arbitrary limit may be in violation of the ADA.
All former disabled employees of Lowe’s who were terminated between January 1, 2004 and May 13, 2010 because they violated Lowe’s leave of absence policies, is eligible for compensation from the settlement. More information about the settlement can be found at www.loweseeocsettlement.com.
Noncompliance with the ADA and other incidents of disability discrimination unfairly harms workers with disabilities. The disability discrimination attorneys of Perona, Langer, Beck and Harrison work hard to ensure that all employees are treated fairly. If you or a loved one has experienced discrimination in the work place, contact us today at (800) 435-7542 for a free, confidential consultation. We can help you with your legal case.