EEOC Sues Osmose Utilities Services for Disability Discrimination and Retaliation

ATLANTA – Osmose Utilities Services, Inc., a provider of services and products to utility companies to support their infrastructures, violated federal law when it denied an employee an accommodation for her disability and then fired her, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, a one call locator who had suffered a head injury and stroke requested to work fully remote from home as an accommodation. In-person attendance was not an essential function of the position and Osmose Utilities had previously allowed the employee to work remotely while its office was relocated in 2019. However, Osmose Utilities denied the employee’s request to work remotely as an accommodation for her medical condition.

Alternatively, the employee requested to work remotely for two to three days per week. However, Osmose Utilities denied the employee’s alternative request. Although the employer granted the employee leave to attend medical appointments, management complained about the employee leaving work to go to medical appointments and pressured her to end her appointments prematurely. Six weeks after her first accommodation request, the employee was fired without any warning.

Such alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits disability discrimination and retaliation against an employee with a disability. The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Osmose Utilities Services, Inc., Case No. 1:24-CV-04140-MLB-JKL) in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process. The EEOC is seeking back pay, compensatory damages, and punitive damages for the employee, as well as injunctive relief to prevent future discrimination.

“This case highlights the importance of considering remote work as a reasonable accommodation for employees with disabilities,” said Marcus G. Keegan, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Atlanta District Office. “Employees have the right to request reasonable accommodations under the ADA and should not be treated adversely when they do so.”

Darrell Graham, district director of the EEOC’s Atlanta District Office, said, “Employers must understand that disability discrimination is both illegal and unacceptable, and we will vigorously pursue justice on behalf of workers who are denied their rights to reasonable accommodations and unlawfully terminated because of a disability.”

For more information on disability discrimination, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/disability-discrimination. For more information on retaliation, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/retaliation.

The EEOC’s Atlanta District Office is responsible for addressing discrimination charges and conducting agency litigation in the State of Georgia and the State of South Carolina Counties of Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, Georgetown, Hampton, Jasper and Williamsburg.

The EEOC prevents and remedies unlawful employment discrimination and advances equal opportunity for all. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.