When you’re injured doing your job, most of us would expect sympathy from our employers.
Well, retail giant Sears offered workers pink slips.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced a $6.2 million settlement agreement with Sears, Roebuck and Co. involving a class action lawsuit under the Americans With Disabilities Act.
The settlement was the biggest on record for the EEOC involving the ADA and it points to a continuing problem in this country when it comes to how employers treat their employees disabilities. Companies are supposed to try and make reasonable accommodations so their workers can return to work. Do you hear that all you managers out there. Not only is it the humane thing to do since they hurt themselves under your employ but it’s the law folks!
“The facts of this case showed that, nearly twenty years after the enactment of the ADA, the rights of individuals with disabilities are still in jeopardy,” said Commission Acting Chairman Stuart J. Ishimaru. “At the same time, this record settlement sends the strongest possible message that the EEOC will use its enforcement authority boldly to protect those rights and advance equal employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities.”
The individual at the head of the lawsuit was a Sears service technician named John Bava, 58, who injured his back, knees and wrist when he fell down a flight of stairs at a customer’s home, according to an article in the Chicago Sun Times.
According to EEOC Chicago District Director John Rowe, Bava took workers compensation leave after the fall and repeatedly tried to return to work. Unfortunately, Sears, he added, “could never see its way clear to provide Bava with a reasonable accommodation which would have put him back to work and, instead, fired him when his leave expired.”
During the discovery process before the trial, Rowe said, investigators uncovered hundreds of other Sears injured employees who were also terminated without any serious attempts by the company to make accommodations for them.
It’s a case that makes you wonder how managers who are involved in such decisions sleep at night.
This from the Sun Times:
Bava said he found out he was terminated after his wife’s discount card was rejected. He received no prior notice that he had been fired, he said, adding, he hopes the settlement sends the message to employers that they should “treat your employees fairly and try to accommodate them if they’re injured.”
I don’t think that’s a lot to ask. Do you?
September 30th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
There has to be a certain prejudice that is virtually on the minds of every non-disabled worker. Without specifics on this case, I seriously wonder exactly what accomodations Sears could have provided Mr. Bova short of re-training in another position completely foreign to his job?
Was he given this opportunity?
If a person is born with a disability, this person should be entitled to every reasonable opportunity to persue their gracious or private endeavors just as every non-disabled person. Barriers, such as curbs, sidewalks, doors, personal facilities, transportation, anything accessable to a non-disabled individual is essentially what the Americans with Disabilities Act is all about. This is absolutely correct, proper and is very much an American way of life. If you have traveled abroad, there exists very scarce provisions for people with disabilities and this is another reason the USA is the greatest country on Earth.
Of course, an individual who becomes disabled for any reason deserves an equal opportunity. The better language used to include ‘reasonable’. I work with a registered plumber. He has over thirty years experience. However, because of repetitive motion, both knees needed to be replaced. This was absolutely caused by his trade. However, because of the guidelines what qualifies him for any disability compensation in our state, Pennsylvania, he has to continue working at 56 as a plumber and he cannot bend his knees. It is ridiculous that according to the ADA, he must, at all times have a helper who is not a plumber. Because he is qualified to maintain and test Back-Flo systems, we were required, by law to install step ladder apparatus and horizontal landing in the 40 of 68 Back Flo pits in our district that are 4 feet or deeper. The reason he does not qualify for a full disability pension is because he is considered overweight by the indemnity insurer we have. This cost the taxpayers at least $40,000. And the horizontal landing have to be removed to service the Back-Flo preventers and reinstalled after the work is complete adding even more labor dollars. I work with the man. He is embarrassed. And he is fortunately able to be retrained and will be at our employer’s gracious expense. They are in the process of putting all facility systems on line and he will be trained to monitor these systems. The man he is replacing is trained and was born disabled. He is in a mobility chair. When he became a systems engineer 15 years ago, the ADA required all the analog guages to be no more than 4 feet off the ground so he could record temperatures and amperages.
It is all about people. Somehow, people include the ones who employ you.
At times I believe you could take any attorney, remove a layer a skin and find solder and components and not blood and organs.
September 30th, 2009 at 3:58 pm
Robert, that early question you raise (regarding the what accommodations could have been provided) is exactly the one on my mind. Given that the primary job responsibilities revoled around appliance installations (hauling, unloading, installing, removing the old appliances, and sometimes removing or loading the old appliances), I, too, wonder what could have been done. Some could have been trained to work administrative duties in fulfilment centers, but those jobs would be very, very few compared to the number of installers. He potentially could have been a driver, but since most installation teams already have two persons on them, it would not make sense to add a third who is there solely to drive.
Would it have been possible to provide such an individual a job at a retail location? That might be a possibility, but installers and retail associates don’t necessarily share the same set of job skills (apart from good customer service and interaction skills).
I would welcome some examples of what others believe would have been reasonable accomodations. On my own, I cannot think of any for such a position that relies on manual labor and physiacal strength.
That said, it is clear that Sears has not done well by its employees, for them to be treated in this manner. Clearly they must have been aware of the level of turnover caused by injuries. While reasonable accomodations may not have been possible for most of the affected individuals, it does seem reasonable that Sears should provide (at no-cost or at a low-cost to the employees) short- and long-term disability coverage beyond that offered through the Worker’s Compensation program. To do anything less than that shows that Sears considers its delivery personnel to be disposable cogs in a machine, a reflection of the model first developed in the industrial revolution that ascribes little value to its employees as human resources (i.e., that believes that labor is unskilled labor and can be easily replaced).
Perhaps the battlefield for this type of issue will soon be fought on the social networking sites. If stories of people like Mr. Bava become known broadly, perhaps potential employees will start expecting better benefits. Perhaps a shortage of delivery personnel would have an impact on Sears’ benefits policies for those staff.
October 1st, 2009 at 1:01 am
Even tho i was part time at sears, i developed a very severe thyroid problem and i coul not even drive. I received notice after 4 months i was no longer employed and had to reapply for the position if i wanted to come back. they were also not very nice about it as i was a good and dependable employee
just a point of interest
October 4th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
Sears is very much like that. One of the worse companies to work for.