Company Used Unlawful Leave and "100% Healed" Policies to Deny Accommodations and Fire Disabled Employees, Lawsuit Alleges

NEW ORLEANS-Imperial Trading Company, LLC, a wholesale distributor which supplies convenience stores in the Southeast, violated federal law by refusing to provide reasonable accommodations for disabled employees and instead fired them, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") alleged in a lawsuit filed today.

The EEOC contends that Imperial Trading Company maintained an unlawful and inflexible maximum-leave policy in which employees with disabilities were ineligible for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The EEOC alleges that Imperial Trading denied leaves of absence as a reasonable accommodation. In addition, employees were required to demonstrate that they did not have any medical restrictions before they were permitted to reapply for work-a "100% healed" policy. According to the EEOC, Imperial Trading Company stymied the interactive process by firing employees rather than considering whether it could accommodate them.

Such conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The EEOC filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana (EEOC v. Imperial Trading Co., LLC Case No: 2:18-cv-08930) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The EEOC's suit seeks back pay, along with compensatory and punitive damages from the employer.

"Employers have a duty under the ADA to engage in an interactive process in an effort to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities," said Rudy Sustaita, regional attorney for the EEOC's Houston District. "A "100% healed" policy inherently violates the ADA."

Addressing inflexible leave policies that discriminate against individuals with disabilities is one of six national priorities identified by the EEOC's Strategic Enforcement Plan ("SEP").