Top of page
Law

Feds Sues Medtronic for Disability Discrimination

A book with title Equal Employment Opportunity

Greenwood, S.C. – Medtronic, a Minneapolis-based company that develops and manufactures medical devices, violated federal law when it terminated April Jackson, a temporary employee, from its Greenwood, S.C., facility because of her disability-related absences, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed. The EEOC further charged that the company failed to provide a reasonable accommodation to Jackson and refused to directly hire Jackson because of her disability.

According to the EEOC’s complaint, Jackson was placed to work at Medtronic’s Greenwood facility as a forklift driver / waste hauler by a temporary staffing agency on Oct. 3, 2016. The EEOC said Medtronic required temporary employees to follow the company attendance policy. Jackson, who was born with one kidney and an under-formed bladder, missed work due to health issues caused by her disability. The EEOC said that on Feb. 10, 2017, Jackson returned to work following a disability-related absence for which Jackson presented a doctor’s note. Medtronic terminated Jackson’s assign­ment that same day, asserting that Jackson was in violation of its attendance policy. The EEOC further alleges that Medtronic did not hire Jackson as a permanent employee because of her disability, despite being in the process of doing so prior to her termination.

“Not only does the ADA protect employees, including temporary employees, from disability discrimination in the workplace, it places an affirmative requirement on employers to explore accom­modations to their generally applicable employment policies, such as attendance policies,” said Lynette A. Barnes, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Charlotte District Office. “An employer simply cannot ignore an employee’s need for a reasonable accommodation of a disability, choosing instead to fire the employee.”

You might also like

gavel Shadowy, moody shot of a legal concept gavel Shadowy, moody shot of a legal concept

Private school settles with DOJ over disability discrimination

Milwaukee Montessori School (MMS) has agreed to pay of $290,000…

Supreme Court of India New Delhi Supreme Court of India New Delhi

India’s SC calls for reassessment of AIIMS candidate with disabilities

India’s Supreme Court has ordered a fresh assessment of a…

School of Law and Social Justice building School of Law and Social Justice building

New centre to improve law and lives through community-led research

The University of Liverpool will lead an innovative new research…

Judge hits hammer, close up Judge hits hammer, close up

Osaka High Court awards equal compensation to family of disabled girl

The Osaka High Court ruled on January 20, 2025, that…