[nfbwatlk] Rejected blind job applicant in Everett wins $55K settlement, Puget Sound Business Journal, January 6 2010

[Nightingale, Noel]

Link:
http://seattle.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2010/01/04/daily23.html?t=printable

Text:
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Rejected blind job applicant in Everett wins $55K settlement
Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle)

A woman applying for a job at an Everett debt collection agency, who claims she wasn't hired because she is blind, has won a $55,000 settlement, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

According to the government, Cheryl Reith applied online for a job with Sentry Credit Inc. but when she met in person with the company's manager, the manager reportedly said "this isn't going to work out" after realizing she was blind.

Reith said she had done similar work for more than eight years using assistive technology for the blind, but the manager reportedly repeated "this just won't work."

The EEOC sued Sentry Credit on Reith's behalf and under the settlement's terms, Sentry will pay Reith $55,000, post a notice in its workplace explaining its commitment to the Americans with Disabilities Act and institute discrimination training.

"Sentry's refusal to consider accommodating Cheryl Reith turned out to be a huge loss to the company," said William Tamayo, EEOC San Francisco regional attorney, in a statement.

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