Lori’s Gifts to Pay $600,000, Resolving EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Lori’s Gift’s, Inc., a nationwide chain of hospital gift shops, will pay $600,000 and provide other equitable relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

According to the suit, Lori’s Gifts engaged in companywide unlawful employment practices since at least 2018, including using unlawful screening criteria and preemployment inquiries, and refused to hire qualified individuals with disabilities based on the perceived need to make accommodations for them. The company required applicants for store positions to complete preemployment screening questions asking whether they could lift up to 30 pounds and whether they could walk or stand for up to five hours when such requirements were not related to or necessary for the jobs. The EEOC’s suit said that if an applicant answered “no” to either screening question, Lori’s Gifts would automatically reject the applicant.

“Federal law prohibits employers from attempting to screen out or exclude applicants with disabilities,” said Debra Lawrence, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Philadelphia District Office. “Applicants with disabilities must be provided with an equal opportunity to seek employment.”

Such alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits the use of qualification standards to screen out or tend to screen out individuals with disabilities. The ADA also prohibits unlawful preemployment inquiries regarding an applicant’s disabilities and prohibits employers from refusing to hire individuals with disabilities because of the perceived need to make reasonable accommodations. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Lori’s Gifts, Inc., Case No. 2:23-cv-03175-EAS-CMV) in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.

In addition to the monetary relief, the two-year consent decree settling the suit enjoins Lori’s Gifts from discriminating on the basis of disability in the future including by making pre-offer inquiries about applicants’ physical capacities and from retaliation and interference. The decree also requires Lori’s Gifts to train all store associates, managers, and human resources personnel on disability discrimination and the ADA; submit periodic reports to the EEOC regarding applicants who seek accommodations; establish a telephone and email hotline for employees and applicants to report concerns, questions, or complaints regarding the ADA; and provide information on its job application webpage about reporting concerns of disability discrimination under the ADA.

For more information on disability discrimination, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/disability-discrimination.

The EEOC’s Philadelphia District Office has jurisdiction over Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, West Virginia, and parts of New Jersey and Ohio. The legal staff of the EEOC also prosecutes discrimination cases in Washington, D.C. and parts of Virginia.

The EEOC is the sole federal agency authorized to investigate and litigate against businesses and other private sector employers for violations of federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. For public sector employers, the EEOC shares jurisdiction with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. The EEOC also is responsible for coordinating the federal government’s employment antidiscrimination effort. More information about the EEOC is available at www.eeoc.gov.