The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is suing a Boston property management firm for allegedly violating federal law by failing to provide a reasonable accommodation to a new hire with a disability and subsequently withdrawing her job offer,.
The lawsuit charges Atlantic Properties Management Corp. and its affiliate, Diversified Funding, Inc., with violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, the individual was offered employment as an executive administrative assistant to the president and vice president of the two companies. Shortly after the offer of employment, the employee was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma, a common form of breast cancer. Her doctor confirmed she was able to perform all aspects of her position, but she would need to receive treatment weekly resulting in a need for some limited time off from work.
When she provided her doctor’s note to the companies, the company president decided to withdraw her job offer without any discussion with the employee, according to the EEOC.
The ADA requires an employer to provide a reasonable accommodation to an employee with a disability and prohibits discrimination based on disability and retaliation for requesting a reasonable accommodation.
The EEOC said it filed suit in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement. The federal agency is seeking back pay, compensatory damages, and punitive damages, as well as injunctive relief to prevent future discrimination.
“This litigation is a textbook example of how the ADA was created to protect workers at a point of deep vulnerability, and it should provide a sharp reminder to employers of the importance of refraining from stereotypical assumptions and pursuing the required interactive process,” said Jeffrey Burstein, the EEOC’s regional attorney for the New York office.
Burstein noted that the EEOC has guidance on cancer in the workplace and the ADA.
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Source: EEOC
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