Benefits May 19, 2006

Woman Sues Utah School Claiming Hiring Discrimination

May 19, 2006 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A Maryland woman on Wednesday filed a discrimination lawsuit against the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind (USDB), claiming that the institution refuses to hire her because she is blind.
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According to the Deseret Morning News, Mary Jo Thorpe filed the suit in the 3rd District Court in Salt Lake City, arguing that her master’s degree in education with an emphasis on teaching blind students qualifies her for a teaching position at USDB, for which she applied in November 2004.

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The position offered was in USDB’s parent-infant program, requiring the specialist to perform visual tracking tests and to teach visual stimulation. Thorpe went to several interviews for the job but was not hired, the newspaper reported.

The suit claims that school officials were concerned whether Thorpe’s blindness would prevent her from performing such tasks, even after Thorpe assured them that she could use alternative techniques to perform all of the required job duties. She said she was told by the officials interviewing her that she had a good chance of getting the job, and that she would be an “excellent role model for blind students.”

Thorpe filed an employment discrimination claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in June of 2005. The EEOC gave Thorpe permission in March to file a civil action against USDB.

Products May 18, 2006

ACS Acquisition to Enhance Learning Solutions

May 18, 2006 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Affiliated Computer Services, Inc. (ACS), a provider of business process outsourcing (BPO), has signed an agreement to acquire Intellinex, LLC.
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Intellinex is an Ernst & Young LLP enterprise delivering and implementing the firm’s learning programs.  According to the announcement, the acquisition is expected to close within 30 days, subject to regulatory approvals.

“We expect all of ACS/Intellinex’s customers, including Ernst & Young, will benefit from their combined knowledge and expertise,” said Mike Hamilton, Americas Chief Learning and Development Officer for Ernst & Young LLP, in the announcement. “[A]nd we believe this transaction will allow us to focus even more of our efforts on the development and implementation of world-class learning content and programs for our people.”

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Ernst & Young has entered into a multi-year learning services agreement with ACS/Intellinex to use its technology and administrative training support, as well as its learning design, to facilitate the delivery of the training content developed by Ernst & Young to its people.

The acquisition will further expand ACS’ menu of human resource outsourcing BPO capabilities by adding learning solutions that include more than 50,000 hours of learning content and curriculums developed for 200 corporate clients and government agencies in North America and Europe. The company will also gain access to existing Intellinex clients, creating cross-sell opportunities for its additional BPO services.

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