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$325,000 Settlement in Disability Discrimination Lawsuit Against Health Care and Assisted Living Facilities Operator, Training Ordered
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Magnolia Health Corporation, a Visalia, Calif.-based company that operates health care and assisted living facilities throughout California's Central Valley, will pay $325,000 and furnish other relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
EEOC filed suit against the company in September 2015, charging that since 2012, Magnolia had discriminated against a class of applicants and employees on the basis of their disability, having a record of a disability, or being perceived as having one. EEOC said that Magnolia denied employees accommodations for their disabilities, and refused to hire, or fired, applicants and employees who had disabilities or were regarded as such. EEOC also said that Magnolia rescinded employment offers when applicants' post-offer medical examinations indicated that they had a record of a disability or had current medical restrictions. EEOC further charged that Magnolia required employees be completely free of medical restrictions to work.
Such alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). EEOC filed its lawsuit in U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of California (EEOC v. Magnolia Health Corporation, et al., Case No. 1:15-cv-01222-DAD-EPG), after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.
In addition to the monetary relief, Magnolia agreed to retain an ADA and equal employment opportunity consultant to revise the company's policies and procedures with respect to disability discrimination, provide discrimination training to the company's workforce with a focus on disability discrimination, and maintain a centralized system to track all accommodation requests and complaints. EEOC will monitor compliance with a two-year consent decree.