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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 22, 2018
HERITAGE HOME GROUP TO PAY $50,000
TO SETTLE EEOC DISABILITY DISCRIMINATION
LAWSUIT
Home
Furnishings Company Denied Accommodation to and Fired Employee,
Federal
Agency Charged
CHARLOTTE,
N.C. – Heritage Home Group, LLC, a North Carolina corporation that designs,
manufactures, sources and retails home furnishings, will pay $50,000 and
provide other relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit brought by
the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced
today. The EEOC charged that Heritage Home violated federal law when it failed
to provide a machine operator at its Hickory Chair Company manufacturing plant
in Hickory, N.C., an accommodation for his disability. The federal agency
further charged that Heritage Home fired the employee because of his
disability.
According to the EEOC’s lawsuit,
the employee (who wishes to remain anonymous) is a diabetic. He developed an
infection and underwent surgery for amputation of one of his toes in March
2016. The employee was also diagnosed with peripheral neuropathy and needed
additional leave to recover fully. The employee informed Heritage Home of his
anticipated return to work the first week of June 2016. Heritage Home informed
the employee in a letter dated April 29, 2016 that it would be terminating his
employment because the employee would not be able to return to work until June.
Such alleged conduct violates the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991 (ADA), which requires employers to
provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with a disability
unless doing so would be an undue hardship. The EEOC filed suit in U.S.
District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, Statesville Division
(EEOC v. Heritage Home Group, LLC, Civil Action No. 5:18-CV-00018) after first
attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation
process.
As part
of the settlement, Heritage Home is required to pay the employee $50,000. In
addition, the company has entered into a two-year consent decree that requires
it to implement an ADA policy; conduct annual training for its human resources
and management personnel on the ADA and its requirement that employees be
provided with reasonable accommodations absent an undue hardship; and report to
the EEOC on its accommodation practices.
“This
settlement recognizes that employees with disabilities are important members of
the workforce and should be provided equal opportunities to succeed in the
workplace,” said Lynette Barnes, regional attorney of the EEOC’s Charlotte
District Office.
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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