Trucking company to pay deaf job applicant $50,000 following EEOC lawsuit
A trucking company has agreed to pay to settle an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) lawsuit that alleged discrimination against a deaf job applicant.
In a February 9 Consent Decree, Missouri-based trucking company Wilson Logistics Inc. agreed to pay former truck driver job applicant Jerrell McCrary a sum of $50,000 to settle accusations of disability discrimination.
The court said that the $50,000 is compensation for backpay and for “emotional distress damages.”
In July 2024, the EEOC sued Wilson Logistics in the U.S. District Court for the District of Middle District of North Carolina, alleging that the company violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) when it refused to hire a deaf job applicant because of his disability.
“…[McCrary] called Wilson Logistics seeking work as a truck driver. He possessed a commercial driver’s license, had relevant experience and had been granted an exemption from regulatory hearing requirements by the U.S. Department of Transportation. When [McCrary] spoke to Wilson through a video relay service, the company’s representative told him he could not bring somebody in who does not read, write, and speak English. He further told him the company does not hire individuals who communicate through sign language.“
Wilson Logistics was further ordered to take several measures to avoid discriminatory practices in the future, including providing employee training, revising application materials, and updating the company website to state that Wilson Logistics is an “Equal Opportunity Employer, which welcomes and values all candidates.”
“An employer cannot refuse to consider a job applicant because of a disability without conducting an individualized inquiry,” said Melinda C. Dugas, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Charlotte District. “The EEOC will continue to litigate cases in which qualified individuals with disabilities are summarily dismissed from the application process.”