Newsroom

NEW ORLEANS – Gracious, LLC, a New Orleans-based company doing business as Gracious Bakery + Café, agreed to pay a former employee $46,500 to settle a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, the company violated federal law after it fired an employee for missing two shifts at the bakery to seek emergency medical treatment related to her pregnancy. Although the

WASHINGTON –The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed lawsuits against two companies to enforce the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the federal agency announced today.

“No pregnant worker should have to choose between their health and earning a living to support their family,” said EEOC General Counsel Karla Gilbride. “The PWFA requires that when an employee needs a modification at work because of their pregnancy or a

TAMPA, Fla. – ABC Pest Control, Inc., which provides residential and commercial pest control services across five counties in Florida, entered into a conciliation agreement with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to resolve a pregnancy accommodation charge, the federal agency announced today.

In the charge, an employee alleged that ABC Pest Control fired her after she requested a reasonable accommodation to attend monthly medical appointments for her pregnancy. The termination violated the Pregnant

INDIANAPOLIS – Wabash National Corporation, a nationwide producer of semi-trailers and other commercial trucking equipment, violated federal law when it failed to accommodate an employee’s known pregnancy-related limitation and subjected her to an unlawful medical inquiry, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, Wabash denied a pregnant employee’s accommodation request to transfer to a role that did not require lying on her stomach. Instead

DALLAS – Dallas Barber and Stylist College, Inc., which operates a barber shop and school in Dallas, violated federal civil rights law when it failed to hire an applicant as a hair braider because she was pregnant, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the suit, a pregnant woman applied for a hair braider position and performed a skills test for Dallas Barber with satisfactory results, but

CLEVELAND – The Laurels of Athens, a nursing and rehabilitation facility in Athens, Ohio, owned and operated by Laurel Heath Care Company, Athens LTC, Inc., Ciena Healthcare Management, Inc., and Ciena Group, LLC, will pay $150,000 and provide other relief to settle an age and sex discrimination case filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

According to the lawsuit, a physical therapy assistant was fired in 2020 after

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – HCL America, Inc. violated federal law when it refused to hire a qualified, 61-year-old Indian job applicant for a sales director position based on his age and national origin, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the lawsuit, HCL America interviewed an applicant for a sales director position in July 2021. Although the applicant met the job qualifications, the hiring manager emailed the

TRENTON, N.J. – Hatzel & Buehler, Inc., a commercial electrical contractor with branch locations in eight states and the District of Columbia, will pay $500,000 to settle an age discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against the company’s New Jersey branch, the federal agency announced today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, since at least November 2020, the vice president of Hatzel & Buehler’s New Jersey branch engaged in age discriminatory

ST. LOUIS – Dollar General Stores will pay $295,000 and furnish other relief to settle a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) age discrimination, harassment, and retaliation lawsuit, the federal agency announced today.

According to the lawsuit, from July 2016 until January 2018, a newly hired Dollar General regional director in Oklahoma harassed district managers who were in their 50s and older by calling them “grumpy old men,” telling them he was building “a millennial

SOCORRO, N.M. – Res-Care and Equus Workforce Solutions (jointly referred to as Res-Care/Equus), nationwide job assistance companies doing business in New Mexico, will pay $125,000 and furnish other relief to settle a disability and pregnancy discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

The EEOC charged Res-Care/Equus at its facility in Socorro, New Mexico with violating federal law when they discriminated against an employee with a high-risk

ATLANTA – Smithfield Foods, Inc. and Smithfield Fresh Meats Sales Corporation (together, “Smithfield Foods”), which operate a food processing business that specializes in pork production, violated federal law when they fired a senior sales employee because of her age, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the lawsuit, the employee worked for Smithfield Foods for over 10 years before she was fired at the age of 59

NEW YORK – Maximum Security NYC, Inc., a security company headquartered in Queens, New York, will pay a former employee $22,500 and implement an anti-discrimination policy and training program to resolve an age- and disability-discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today. 

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, Maximum Security had given a 57-year-old employee numerous assignments at client hotels where he was responsible for assisting with evacuations

ATLANTA – Covenant Woods Senior Living, LLC and BrightSpace Senior Living, LLC (together, “Covenant Woods”), which operate the Covenant Woods retirement community in Columbus, Georgia, will pay $78,000 to settle an age and disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency announced today.

The EEOC charged in its suit that, in February 2022, Covenant Woods fired a long-tenured receptionist, despite having recognized the 78-year-old employee as one of its

BALTIMORE – Savage River Lodge, LLC and Little Crossings, LLC, doing business as Fronterra Resources (collectively referred to as Savage River Lodge), will pay $150,000 and furnish significant equitable relief to settle federal charges that they discriminated against an employee because of her pregnancy and then fired her.

The Frostburg, Maryland business offers cabins for rent and operates a restaurant for lodge guests, according to the lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

CHICAGO – Urbana School District No. 116 agreed to pay $206,301 to settle an age discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency announced today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, the Urbana School District limited the salary increases of Charles Koplinski and a group of other teachers over the age of 45 because of their age, due to a provision of a collective bargaining agreement between the school district and

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Gregg Orr Auto Collection, Inc., a group of car dealerships, has agreed to pay $325,000 and provide other relief to settle a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) lawsuit alleging that the Texarkana, Texas-based company fired a senior sales executive to avoid medical costs related to his cancer diagnosis, the federal agency announced today.

According to the lawsuit, Greg Orr Auto fired the 65-year-old employee in February 2020 without prior warning and

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today issued a final rule to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), providing important clarity that will allow pregnant workers the ability to work and maintain a healthy pregnancy and help employers understand their duties under the law. The PWFA requires most employers with 15 or more employees to provide “reasonable accommodations,” or changes at work, for a worker’s known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth

ATLANTA – Dillard’s, Inc., a national department store chain based in Little Rock, Arkansas, will pay $70,000 and furnish other relief to settle a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) retaliation lawsuit, the federal agency announced today.

According to the lawsuit, in February 2020, a longtime, high-performing African American sales associate in Dillard’s Northpoint Store informed the new store manager about her existing pregnancy-related accommodation. Days later, the new manager rescinded the accommodation and the

CLEVELAND – Cedar Fair, L.P., doing business as Cedar Point, and Magnum Management Corporation, which own, operate, and staff the Sandusky, Ohio-based Cedar Point amusement park, will pay $50,000 to settle an age discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, Cedar Fair and Magnum provided housing at significantly below-market rates for out-of-town seasonal employees. During Cedar Point’s 2021 and 2022 seasons

NEW ORLEANS – Pharmacy and retailer Walgreens Co. has agreed to pay $205,000 and provide other relief to settle a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.                                                                   

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, Walgreens violated federal law when one of its stores in Alexandria, Louisiana refused to allow a pregnant employee with impairments to take emergency leave to seek medical attention, forcing her to quit. The

ATLANTA – Bakotic Pathology Associates, LLC (Bako), a pathology laboratory headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia, will pay $50,000 and furnish other relief to settle a sex discrimination and retaliation lawsuit, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today.

The EEOC suit alleged Bako discriminated and retaliated against an employee who was experiencing pregnancy-related symptoms, when it fired her while she was on approved medical leave and receiving short-term disability benefits, shortly after she complained of

NEW ORLEANS – Gracious, LLC, a company based in New Orleans and doing business as Gracious Bakery + Café, violated federal law when it fired an employee because of a medical condition related to her pregnancy, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed February 16, 2024.

According to the EEOC, the bakery operator violated federal law when it fired an employee after missing two shifts to seek emergency medical treatment

DALLAS – Amarillo-based dealership Pete’s Car Smart will pay $145,000 and furnish other relief to settle an age and disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, an employee who had been employed with Pete’s Car Smart for nearly 18 years underwent bypass heart surgery in early 2021, requiring a brief medical leave of absence. In the days leading up to her

ATLANTA – Covenant Woods Senior Living, LLC and BrightSpace Senior Living, LLC (together, “Covenant Woods”), which operate the Covenant Woods retirement community in Columbus, Georgia, violated federal law when they fired a 78-year-old employee from her position as a receptionist because of her age and disability, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the lawsuit, the receptionist, who was recognized as one of Covenant Woods’ employees of