AT&T will pay a former Texas employee $60,000 to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The Commission claimed that AT&T violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to hire an applicant as a cable splicer technician because of his insulin use for Type 2 diabetes. For a Limited Time receive a
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According to EEOC, the individual had the necessary experience and expertise to do the job and had performed similar work for AT&T for many years after being diagnosed.
In addition to paying the fine, AT&T agreed to comply with ADA provisions and to provide ADA training to staffing managers in the San Antonio area. These managers will review the company’s policies prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability and will acknowledge that treatment for diabetes does not automatically disqualify someone from employment.
“Employers who respond to disabled individuals with knee-jerk exclusions based on myths, fears, and stereotypes, rather than considering individual abilities, put themselves at risk,” said EEOC senior trial attorney Eduardo Juarez.
A similar case concerning diabetes-related discrimination was heard by the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit. Read the entire article Did Supervisor's Bias Prompt Diabetic's Reassignment?
This article previously appeared on Safety.BLR.com.