The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed suit against the Beaumont engineering firm, ENGlobal Engineering Inc., for disability discrimination against former employee Jeff Rose.  The suit was filed on August 26th in the Eastern District of Texas.

Rose was hired in August 2007 and diagnosed with multiple sclerosis a month later.  Rose assured his manager that he could continue working despite the diagnosis.  Rose's manager urged him to apply for short-term disability leave.  A month later Rose presented his manager with an official unrestricted medical release for him to return to work.  When he asked to return, Rose was told his position was unavailable and later received notice of his termination on September 17th.

According to court documents, the position was not filled until October 8th.  

If you or someone you know has been the victim of disability discrimination, contact the Houston disability discrimination attorneys of Ross Law Group at 713-482-6910 to learn more about your rights.

Mark Theodoridis of Houston filed a lawsuit against his former employer, Gay Buick GMC Inc., on August 17th for constant harassment and age discrimination while working for the company as fleet and credit union manager.  

Theodoridis worked for GMC from November 1999 to April 2010.  In 2005, he filed a complaint with the Texas Workforce Commission for feeling that his managers and coworkers treated him differently because he was older.  Theodoridis quit two years later after the issue was not resolved.  In 2009, Gay Buick GMC rehired Theodoridis ensuring him that things would be different.  Theodoridis claims that the discrimination did not end after he resumed his position, but rather was often not invited to luncheons and not paid more commission on internet sales like other employees.  He was later terminated from his position on April 22nd of this year.

Theodoridis is seeking unspecified damages for the embarrassment he suffered and negative effects this will have on his future employment searches.

If your or someone you know has suffered from age discrimination in the workplace, contact the Houston age discrimination lawyers of Ross Law Group at 713-482-6910 to learn more about your rights. 

At a press conference on Monday, ADAPT of Austin and the Texas Civil Rights Project announced the launching of a new Americans with Disabilities Act campaign to recognize the 20th anniversary of its creation.  The two organizations have filed over 20 disability discrimination lawsuits across the state.

One case was filed against U.S. Congressman Lamar Smith for not adding a ramp to his office, another against Duck Tours in Austin for not being wheelchair accessible, and another against the University of Texas School of Architecture for not providing full access to exhibits in Goldsmith Hall.  Another lawsuit is being filed against Seton Healthcare of Brackenridge for not providing a hearing-impaired patient with an interpreter.

Officials at the conference said they hope they can settle the issues outside of court, stating that the point was not to sue, but to obtain fair access to the places being sued.

If you or someone you love has been the victim of disability discrimination, contact the Houston disability discrimination attorneys of Ross Law Group at 713-482-6910 to learn more about your rights.

A Sears store in Corpus Christi recently settled a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for denying a 61-year old applicant a job position because of their age.  

The EEOC alleged that the Sears store on 1305 Airline Road did not hire a 61-year old applicant for an entry-level loss prevention/asset protection position despite 27 years of investigative experience and other qualifications, and violated the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.  

The settlement requires that Sears pay $30,750 to the applicant they refused to hire, has managers and supervisors review ADEA and Sears policy before signing to comply to these policies, provide training to employees on ADEA policy, and post a notice stating their intent to follow ADEA policies.

If you or someone you know has been the victim of age discrimination, contact the Houston age discrimination lawyers of The Ross Law Group at 713-482-6910 to learn more about your rights. 

The Dallas Area Rapid Transit board unanimously approved a transgender inclusive policy to be added to the business' anti-discrimination policy.  DART employees service the Dallas area in various forms of public transportation.

In response to the addition, Get EQUAL Now co-founder, C.D. Kirven, stated, "The only identification that really matters is human and that's a right no company should deny any employee".

The policy will ban the termination of an employee for being a transgender.  The way in which a person dresses or identifies themselves in regards to gender should not be discriminated against.  

If you or someone you know has been the victim of gender discrimination, contact the Houston gender discrimination lawyers of the Ross Law Group at 800-634-8042 to learn more about your rights. 

Yesterday, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced that the nation-wide pet store PETCO would pay $145,000 for the suit filed against them for disability discrimination.  The EEOC had charged PETCO with failing to properly accommodate a deaf employee at one of its stores in Aurora, Colorado. 

Nancy Buchner was hired by the PETCO store in 2001 for her thirty years of experience in pet grooming.  Buchner has been deaf since birth and was told that the store's manager and employees would assist her in scheduling appointments over telephone.  However, Buchner went to the EEOC after fellow employees and store managers failed to schedule appointments for her, even when specifically requested by customers.  Some workers told customers that Buchner no longer worked there in order to shift appointments to other groomers.  Moreover, Buchner was criticized for her communication skills in annual performance reviews done by the company.  Buchner decided to resign in 2006.

The EEOC filed the suit against PETCO in April 2009 for violating the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990.  In addition to fines, PETCO will be required to train staff members in avoiding disability discrimination.

If you or someone you know has been the victim of disability discrimination, contact the Houston disability discrimination attorneys of the Ross Law Group at 800-634-8042 to learn more about your rights.