Wednesday
Feb282007
Lowes Cos. Slapped with EEOC Lawsuit
Wednesday, February 28, 2007 at 3:57PM U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission CLAIMS Lowe's Home Centers violated federal law by refusing to make a reasonable accommodation for an employee with a disability at its Knoxville, Tenn.
According to the EEOC's lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Norman Neff, who relies upon a manual wheelchair for mobility, requested that he be allowed to bring his service dog to work with him. Neff suffers from overuse injuries in his arms, wrists, and shoulders due to using the wheelchair, and his suffering is reduced by using his service dog that is trained to pull him in his wheelchair. Lowe's denied Neff's request for this reasonable accommodation, the EEOC charged, and this also caused him to suffer emotional injuries.
Such alleged conduct violates the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), which requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for the known disabilities of its employees. The EEOC filed suit after first attempting to reach a voluntary settlement through conciliation. The lawsuit asks the court to order the company to provide the requested accommodation, pay compensatory damages for emotional and psychological harm, and pay punitive damages.
According to the EEOC's lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Norman Neff, who relies upon a manual wheelchair for mobility, requested that he be allowed to bring his service dog to work with him. Neff suffers from overuse injuries in his arms, wrists, and shoulders due to using the wheelchair, and his suffering is reduced by using his service dog that is trained to pull him in his wheelchair. Lowe's denied Neff's request for this reasonable accommodation, the EEOC charged, and this also caused him to suffer emotional injuries.
Such alleged conduct violates the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), which requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for the known disabilities of its employees. The EEOC filed suit after first attempting to reach a voluntary settlement through conciliation. The lawsuit asks the court to order the company to provide the requested accommodation, pay compensatory damages for emotional and psychological harm, and pay punitive damages.
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