CHANTILLY, VIRGINIA — The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit against United Parcel Service, Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The lawsuit alleges that UPS violated federal law by refusing to hire a deaf applicant after failing to provide an American Sign Language interpreter for his orientation.

The alleged incident occurred involving an entry-level package handling position in Chantilly, Virginia. UPS made a conditional offer of employment to the applicant subject to the completion of a scheduled orientation. The applicant notified UPS that he needed an American Sign Language interpreter to complete his orientation.

UPS instructed the applicant not to attend the orientation and advised it would reschedule the event. After weeks of no contact from the company, the applicant contacted UPS and was instructed to attend orientation the next day. Upon arriving at the orientation, the applicant learned that UPS had failed to arrange for an interpreter and was instructed to leave. UPS terminated the applicant's candidacy.

The EEOC filed the suit after attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. Debra Lawrence, regional attorney for the Philadelphia District, addressed the legal obligations in a statement. "Deaf workers face immense barriers to employment, and the ADA was designed to help remove those barriers," Lawrence said.

Why It Matters

The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits workplace discrimination based on disability and requires employers to provide reasonable accommodation to qualified applicants and employees with disabilities absent undue hardship. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law and explicitly prohibits discrimination based on disability in employment, including the requirement for employers to provide reasonable accommodations such as sign language interpreters. The EEOC issued a guidance document clarifying that employers are required to provide sign language interpreters as a reasonable accommodation for deaf applicants during job interviews and training sessions. Primary source: eeoc.gov

Timeline

Debra Lawrence stated that deaf workers face immense barriers to employment, and the ADA was designed to help remove those barriers.

Lawrence further stated that the law is crystal-clear that employers must provide reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants and employees to enable them to enjoy equal employment opportunities. She added that this includes providing ASL interpreter services to applicants and new hires who need them to enjoy equal participation in orientation or training.

What's New

Additional reporting shows prior legal actions involving similar allegations. In 2003, a national class-action lawsuit against UPS required the company to provide interpreters and communication services to deaf employees, indicating a long-standing pattern of non-compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In 2006, the EEOC filed a lawsuit against UPS Supply Chain Solutions (UPS SCS) for failing to provide a sign language interpreter to a deaf employee, Mauricio Centeno, during training and meetings, leading to a $95,000 settlement and a three-year consent decree requiring systemic changes in accommodation practices. Primary sources: eeoc.gov, eeoc.gov (2)

In 2016, the EEOC filed a similar lawsuit against FedEx for failing to provide a sign language interpreter for a deaf job applicant, resulting in a settlement of $500,000. The EEOC settled a case with Amazon for $1.2 million after the company failed to provide reasonable accommodations for a deaf employee, including sign language interpreters during training. Primary source: eeoc.gov