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The EEOC Chicago District Office has issued a press release today.
Gregory M. Gochanour, Regional Attorney
gregory.gochanour@eeoc.gov (312) 869-8100
Jean P. Kamp, Associate Regional Attorney
jean.kamp@eeoc.gov (312) 869-8116
Patrick Connor, Senior Trial Attorney
patrick.connor@eeoc.gov (612) 334-4006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 1, 2019
BATH AND BODY WORKS TO PAY $38,000 TO SETTLE EEOC DISABILITY DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT
Company Failed to Provide a Reasonable Accommodation for Employee with Vision Issues Federal Agency Charged
Minneapolis, M.N. -- Bath and Body Works, LLC, a national chain with more than 1600 retail stores selling products ranging from candles, hand soap, hand sanitizers and home fragrances,will pay $38,000 to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.
According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, a Bath and Body Works store in Minnetonka, Minn. refused to provide a reasonable accommodation to a lead sales associate with type-1 diabetes suffering retinopathy. The employee asked for a larger monitor screen for the cash register, but, instead, the manager purchased a cheap, hand-held magnifying glass.
This alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) which requires employer to provide employees and applicants a reasonable accommodation for a disability, unless it causes the employer an undue hardship.
The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Bath and Body Works, LLC, 0:18-cv-02758-SRN-HB) in U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its voluntary conciliation process.
Under the consent decree settling the suit, Bath and Body Works will pay the employee $38,000 and adopt district-wide policies to prevent future violations of the ADA.
“Companies must do more when an employee with a disability requests an accommodation. The purchase of a cheap magnifying glass was humiliating for this employee,” said Julianne Bowman, the EEOC's district director in Chicago, who managed the federal agency's pre-suit administrative investigation.
Gregory Gochanour, the regional attorney for the EEOC’s Chicago District, said, “National employers must train their store managers to understand the ADA and have a system in place to accommodate employees with a disability.”
The EEOC’s Chicago District Office is responsible for processing charges of employment discrimination, administrative enforcement and conducting agency litigation in Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and North and South Dakota, with area offices in Milwaukee and Minneapolis.
The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.
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