Federal agency sues Las Vegas call center for disability discrimination, retaliation

The operators of a call center in Las Vegas discriminated against employees because of their disabilities and retaliated against them for requesting accommodations, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission charged in a lawsuit announced Friday.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for Nevada, since August 2018, the defendants — GSK Research Inc. and KGS Research Inc., doing business as VRI Research — failed to observe their legal responsibilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

For example, one employee needed short breaks to address muscle spasms caused by muscular dystrophy but a manager allegedly responded by saying he “didn’t do accommodations.” In another instance, a human resources official allegedly said she was not aware of any law that required the company to accommodate an employee’s medical condition.

The defendants allegedly required another employee, who did not have use of his legs and worked remotely full time, to travel to the office to sign administrative paperwork and pick up his paychecks, refusing his request for accommodation to not travel to office for minor administrative tasks. Employees were terminated, placed on unpaid leave, and/or retaliated against for requesting accommodations, according to the lawsuit.

“Employers must adhere to the requirements of federal anti-discrimination laws, including the ADA,” Michael Mendoza, director of the EEOC’s Las Vegas office, said in a statement. “The EEOC stands ready to enforce those laws when employers choose to ignore them.”

Such alleged conduct violates the ADA, which prohibits discrimination based on disability, requires accommodation of disabilities absent undue hardship, and prohibits discharge of an employee because of their disability or because they requested an accommodation. The EEOC filed suit after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.

Attempts to reach defendants in the case weren’t immediately successful.

“The EEOC will continue to enforce protections on behalf of employees with disabilities so they are not excluded from the workforce, and protect them from retaliation when they assert their rights under the ADA,” Beatriz Andre, acting regional attorney for the EEOC Los Angeles District, said in a statement.

The EEOC’s Los Angeles District Office is responsible for addressing discrimination charges and conducting agency litigation in central and southern California, southern Nevada, Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa, Wake Island, and the Northern Mariana Islands.