OK CONCRETE TO PAY $45,000 TO SETTLE EEOC DISABILITY DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT

July 7, 2017

 

OK CONCRETE TO PAY $45,000 TO SETTLE EEOC DISABILITY DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT

Mixed Concrete Company Fired Driver After Learning He Had Prostate Cancer,

Federal Agency Charged

    

WICHITA FALLS, Texas – OK Concrete, a Wichita Falls-based mixed concrete company, will pay $45,000 and furnish other relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employ­ment Opportunity Commis­sion (EEOC), the agency announced today. 

 

According to EEOC's lawsuit, Joey Snyder, a mixer driver, was fired within hours after he told his supervisor that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. Snyder was able to perform all of the duties of the job, but simply told his supervisor he made need time off for treatment, EEOC said.

 

OK Concrete’s decision to fire Snyder, a qualified individual with a disability, violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). EEOC filed its lawsuit in lawsuit (Civil Action No. 7:15-cv-00083-O) in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

 

A consent decree signed by U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor requires that in addition to providing monetary relief to Snyder, OK Concrete will conduct training on the ADA to its managers and employees and implement a policy against disability discrimination. OK Concrete will also post notices against discrimination in all of its facilities.

 

 “OK Concrete Company discriminated against Mr. Snyder by making assumptions about his disability and his ability to perform all of the functions of the job,” said Suzanne Anderson, Supervisory Trial Attorney for EEOC’s Dallas District Office. “But Mr. Snyder has successfully driven trucks locally and over the road for decades. He did not let cancer slow him down.”

                                                                  

EEOC Trial Attorney Meaghan Shepard added, “Joey Snyder came forward and filed this charge so that employees who let their company know about their disabilities can do so without fear of being fired. EEOC believes that this outcome is a success not just for Mr. Snyder, but for the community as a whole.”

           

In fiscal year 2015, 26,968 ADA charges were filed with EEOC and state and local anti-discrimination agencies.

 

EEOC is responsible for enforcing federal laws against employment discrimination.  Further information about the agency is available at www.eeoc.gov.

 

#  #  #

 

Contact:

Meaghan Shepard

(214) 253-2746

Suzanne Anderson

(214) 253-2740

TTY: 214-253-2710