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Benefits May 9, 2005
Deaf Worker Files Discrimination Suit
May 9, 2005 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A deaf worker at the
Albertsons Distribution Center in Fort Worth, Texas has filed
a lawsuit claiming he was the victim of harassment and
discrimination.
Reported by Nevin E. Adams
According to the federal lawsuit, the EEOC found that Monteleone was subjected to harassment by supervisors and co-workers and was denied transfers because of his disability. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages against Albertsons and employee Charles Davis.
On some days, co-workers hurled cans of food and bottles of bleach at William Monteleone, according to the Fort Worth Star-telegram, citing a federal lawsuit. The suit also claims that a supervisor sometimes cupped his hand behind his ear, feigning deafness, and yelled directly into Monteleone’s face – and that on a routine basis Charles Davis, a co-worker, would gun the engine on a forklift and drive the machine to a screeching halt near Monteleone.
Monteleone, who is 39, lost his hearing as an infant as a result of an illness. He began working at the Albertsons warehouse in 1991, according to the report. In December 2002, he filed a complaint with the EEOC and received clearance to file suit in December 2004.
Albertsons officials have denied Monteleone’s claims, according to the Star-Telegram report.
Monteleone is still employed by Albertsons, but he suffered a back injury in July 2003 that has forced him to be on leave, according to the lawsuit.