Staffing Firm Pays $1.25 Million to Settle Allegations of Disability Discrimination

National Telecommuting Institute, Inc. (NTI) has agreed to pay $1.25 million to former employees who were impacted by a discriminatory policy, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The EEOC lawsuit accused NTI of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) when it did not pursue placement or referral of blind and low-vision job applicants as telephone-based customer service agents after the company became aware that the applicants used accessibility technologies such as screen readers to convert computer text into speech. The staffing agency presumed that its client employers were not able to support the technology at the time. Such technology is considered a reasonable accommodation for employees with low vision. The lawsuit also contends that NTI denied disability-related accommodations during their pre-employment application process. Both practices were unnecessary, according to the EEOC, and represented exclusionary barriers to employment opportunities since that policy was in place in 2017.

Reasonable accommodations 

Employers are required to make reasonable accommodations for employees with established disabilities. While there is no assistive technology that could help a blind applicant become a firefighter, many jobs are within reach for those with serious vision problems. Staffing agencies, just like employers, are required by law to follow federal law when it comes to hiring applicants and placing them with client employers. In this case, the blind employees were qualified to work at call centers so long as they had screen reading software and other assistive technology at their disposal. Instead, the staffing agency denied the blind applicants any form of assistance. Such conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The settlement

In addition to paying $1.25 million to various applicants who were impacted by the discriminatory policy, the EEOC will require NTI to sign a three-year consent decree that will provide internal training about employees’ rights and their own responsibilities under the ADA. NTI will also be required to revise its policies and practices concerning the provision of reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities, including blindness. The settlement also calls for the appointment of an internal ADA coordinator and external monitor to ensure compliance with the EEOC’s requirements to prevent future discrimination against disabled employees.

For disabled employees 

The Forsythe Law Firm, LLC handles disability discrimination cases filed by employees who were either fired, passed up for a job they were qualified for, passed up for a promotion they were qualified for or retaliated against for reporting a violation of the ADA. You, as a United States worker, are entitled to certain rights under the law. One of those rights is that if your employer can reasonably accommodate your disability, they must. In the case mentioned above, that simply meant providing screen reader technology to vision-impaired employees.

If you have suffered discrimination in the workplace, call our Atlanta employment lawyers today to schedule a consultation and learn more about how we can help.