|
The
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced the
settlement of a disability discrimination lawsuit against the St. Louis
Rams, the city's National Football League (NFL) team, for $134,000 and
important remedial relief on behalf of Ron DuBuque, a long-term
employee with a seizure disorder.
Under the terms of the consent
decree, filed today for approval in the U.S. District Court for the
Eastern District of Missouri (EEOC and DuBuque v. The St. Louis Rams
Partnership, The Rams Football Company, Inc. and ITB Football Company,
L.L.C., doing business as The St. Louis Rams, 4:08-CV-01503-TIA), the
Rams will pay a total of $134,000 to settle the case – including
emotional distress damages of $100,000 and a $34,000 contract in which
DuBuque will be engaged as a Rehabilitation Specialist for two years.
The decree also requires the team to provide training on the Americans
With Disabilities Act (ADA) to managers and supervisors of the Rams.
"As
this case and many others show, disability does not mean inability,"
said EEOC Acting Chairman Stuart J. Ishimaru. "All employers should
make workplace decisions based on merit and qualifications to do the
job, rather than on myths, fears, or stereotypes associated with a
person's disability."
DuBuque, who had been an assistant trainer
with the team for 11 years before he was fired, had epilepsy during his
entire employment. DuBuque and the EEOC alleged that he had
successfully performed his job until the Rams' management, in June
2006, claimed he was a medical liability and posed a threat to his own
safety and that of coworkers. DuBuque was diagnosed with trauma-induced
epilepsy in 1984, more than a decade before working for the Rams.
"We
are pleased that Ron DuBuque and the EEOC were able to reach an
agreement with the Rams that will enable us to further Congress'
intention that persons with disabilities be treated as the valuable
employees they are," said Regional Attorney Barbara A. Seely of the
EEOC's St. Louis District Office. "The St. Louis Rams, one of the most
well-known and prestigious employers in our city, have a legal
obligation under the ADA to provide a workplace free from disability
discrimination."
Login to read more.
|