“Accommodation?” Cases

• The City of Berkeley, CA, in response from a request from three seriously disabled City Commission members, “generously” allowed them to attend Commission meetings remotely … IF the members allowed their home addresses to be published “as teleconference locations” AND IF they allowed entry into their homes to community members who wished to attend the meetings in person. Two of those members use electric wheelchairs and the third has MS and a compromised immune system. EEOC sued Berkeley under Title II of the ADA, and the city settled by waiving the outside access requirement. Because the Commission members are unpaid, there was no financial settlement, but they can be awarded attorneys’ fees.

• JBS, a Brazilian meat-packing company with a plant in Colorado, is being accused of inhumane treatment of legal immigrant workers, exploiting them (because they are not fluent in English) by packing them into substandard, overcrowded housing at exorbitant rental rates (for what they are receiving). The plant’s union reported the problem to federal authorities. It turns out that same plant settled a race and religion discrimination case in 2021 for $5.5 million. A movement is underway to block JBS from listing its stock on any US stock exchange, based on its record.

• A Michigan farming business settled a hostile workplace claim through EEOC for $40,000. A female employee was being harassed and threatened by a male employee with whom she had been in a prior relationship. When she complained to the employer, their HR staff said she had to obtain a restraining order before they could act – which is not true. An expensive lapse in judgement….

• A New York-based provider of home healthcare settled a lawsuit with EEOC for $400,000 for “accommodating” race-based requests for home healthcare aides.