Filed Date: June 28, 2002
Closed Date: 2004
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On June 28, 2002, the Phoenix office of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit under Title VII against Aztec Inn Properties LLC and HSL Properties Financial Corporation in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona. The EEOC alleged that the defendants had violated the rights of five of their hotel's housekeeping staff members by discriminating against them on the basis of their intellectual disability and/or Down's Syndrome. Specifically, they alleged that the defendants had harassed them, failed to provide reasonable accommodations for their disabilities, and discharged them wrongfully. On September 9, 2002, the complainants intervened in the case as plaintiffs.
On November 20, 2002, the defendants filed a third party complaint and asked the court to add Community Psychology Education Services, Ltd. (CPES) as a third-party defendant to the case. On February 20, 2003, CPES filed a motion for summary judgment on the third-party complaint that had been filed against them. On December 4, 2003, the district court granted CPES's motion for summary judgment and dismissed them from the case. This dismissal was appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit by the other defendants on May 12, 2004.
Meanwhile, on April 3, 2003, the remaining defendants filed for summary judgment, but their request was denied by the court on May 19, 2003. After several failed settlement conferences, the defendants filed a motion for sanctions for violation of statutory conciliation mandates.
With these motions were pending, the parties reached a settlement and filed a consent decree with the district court on August 27, 2004. As part of the settlement, the third-party defendants agreed to drop their complaint against CPES. The district court adopted the consent decree on September 1, 2004, and the Ninth Circuit dismissed the appeal on October 4, 2004. Under the terms of the decree, the defendants agreed to pay the complainants $50,000.00 in compensatory damages, to be deposited into trust accounts for their usage, and $13,500.00 in attorneys' fees. They also agreed to expunge the employment records of the complainants of any mention of this lawsuit, to offer them the opportunity to be reinstated in their jobs, and to provide reasonable accommodations for their disabilities. The decree also enjoined the defendants from discriminating against any employee on the basis of a disability or retaliating against any employee who complaints of discrimination. They agreed to develop an anti-discrimination policy, and to enter into a contract with a service-provider that would utilize a crew of persons with developmental disabilities as housekeeping staff workers. They agreed to post and distribute notice of their anti-discrimination policy to all employees, and to hold annual 90-minute training sessions in disability law and the rights of disabled persons in the workplace, to be attended by all crew members and supervisory staff. The defendants were required to file bi-annual reports with the EEOC regarding their compliance with the terms of the consent decree. The defendants agreed to keep a written record of all employees who attend the training sessions, and the defendants were to keep that record for the duration of the consent decree. The EEOC and the ACDL were to be allowed to send representatives to the crew member anti-discrimination training sessions. The EEOC was also to have the right to enter the defendants' premises without notice to see whether they complied with the requirement that they post a notice of anti-discrimination laws in a prominent place in the workplace.
Summary Authors
Justin Kanter (3/17/2008)
Collins, Raner Christercunean (Arizona)
Pyle, Charles R. (Arizona)
O'Neill, Mary Jo (Arizona)
Reams, Gwendolyn Young (District of Columbia)
Shanley, Sally C. (Arizona)
Smith, C. Emanuel (Arizona)
Dacey, John R. (Arizona)
Jutila, Sharon M. (Arizona)
Selden, David A. (Arizona)
Active
Collins, Raner Christercunean (Arizona)
Pyle, Charles R. (Arizona)
O'Neill, Mary Jo (Arizona)
Reams, Gwendolyn Young (District of Columbia)
Shanley, Sally C. (Arizona)
Smith, C. Emanuel (Arizona)
Dacey, John R. (Arizona)
Jutila, Sharon M. (Arizona)
Selden, David A. (Arizona)
Daley-Rooney, Rose Ann (Arizona)
Rico, Jose De Jesus (Arizona)
Last updated May 12, 2022, 8 p.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: Arizona
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: June 28, 2002
Closing Date: 2004
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, on behalf of one or more workers.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Attorney Organizations:
NDRN/Protection & Advocacy Organizations
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
Community Psychology Education Services, Ltd, Private Entity/Person
HSL Properties Financial Corporation, Private Entity/Person
Aztec Inn Properties, LLC, Private Entity/Person
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12111 et seq.
Availably Documents:
Injunctive (or Injunctive-like) Relief
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Defendant
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Amount Defendant Pays: 63500
Order Duration: 2004 - 2006
Content of Injunction:
Expungement of Employment Record
Develop anti-discrimination policy
Utilize objective hiring/promotion criteria
Other requirements regarding hiring, promotion, retention
Post/Distribute Notice of Rights / EE Law
Provide antidiscrimination training
Implement complaint/dispute resolution process
Issues
General:
Discrimination-area:
Discharge / Constructive Discharge / Layoff
Other Conditions of Employment (including assignment, transfer, hours, working conditions, etc)
Discrimination-basis:
Disability (inc. reasonable accommodations)
EEOC-centric: