Custodial Contractor Charged With Worker Discrimination

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has fined an Ohio janitorial contractor US$315,000 to settle federal age and disability discrimination charges, Insurance Journal reports.

An EEOC investigation revealed that Janitorial Services Inc. & Arbeit Inc. (JSI), in Cuyahoga Heights, Ohio, failed to hire applicants for various positions if they were age 40 or older. The investigation also found that JSI rejected disabled applicants for positions based on alleged safety or other concerns without conducting individualized assessments as required by law. These practices violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).

Under the terms of the settlement, the fine will be divided among the alleged discrimination victims, who will also receive job offers from JSI. The company is required to provide periodic reports to the EEOC on all applicants as well as revise and distribute its internal equal employment opportunity policies to current employees.

In addition, JSI will conduct annual ADA and ADEA training for all supervisors, managers, human resources officials, and company executives and create an internal task force to ensure that future applicants are hired in compliance with the law.

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