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Compliance January 4, 2005
Northwest Settles ADA Lawsuit
January 4, 2005 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Northwest
Airlines has settled a lawsuit alleging the air carrier
excluded applicants for airport ramp equipment service
employee and cleaner positions if they had epilepsy or
insulin-dependent diabetes.
Reported by Fred Schneyer
A news release from the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) said the anti-discrimination agency settled the April 2001 lawsuit alleging violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The announcement said Northwest denied that its hiring practices were improper.
The EEOC sad a key element of the agreement is that Northwest will offer an individualized assessment of the current ability of an airport ramp position applicant with insulin-dependent diabetes or a seizure disorder to safely perform the job’s essential functions with or without reasonable accommodation. Northwest also will provide a settlement fund of $510,000 for the 28 workers for whom the EEOC was seeking relief.
“This lawsuit was an important reminder to employers that the ADA requires that they give individualized assessments to their employees with disabilities to determine whether they could perform their jobs with or without reasonable accommodation,” asserted Chester Bailey, District Director of the EEOC Milwaukee District Office, in the news release.
More information about the ADA is here .