Case details
Company claimed it tried to find accommodations for worker
SUMMARY
$0
Amount
Verdict-Defendant
Result type
Not present
Ruling
KEYWORDS
emotional distress, neck, shoulder
FACTS
In January 2013, plaintiff Robert Gardner, a ramp transport driver for Federal Express Corp., suffered an on-the-job injury to his neck and shoulder. As a result, he was slated to be on leave until August 2013, but he later told co-workers that he planned to return to work in September 2013. Since FedEx provides up to 90 days of job-protected medical leave, Gardner’s leave was set to expire on May 7, 2013. However, the company granted Gardner a two-week extension, until a doctor’s appointment on May 21, 2013. On May 22, 2013, the day after Gardner’s doctor’s appointment, FedEx changed Gardner’s work status to “displaced.” This allowed FedEx to replace Gardner or leave his position unfilled. As a result, FedEx posted a route bid, which included two runs Gardner used to make, among existing drivers at Gardner’s work location on Aug. 26, 2013. Gardner was ultimately released to return to work on Aug. 30, 2013. However, FedEx did not place him back into his route because he had been displaced and his route had been posted on FedEx’s internal system. Gardner sued Federal Express Corp., alleging disability discrimination, failure to provide reasonable accommodation, failure to engage in an interactive process regarding reasonable accommodation, retaliation, and failure to prevent discrimination or retaliation. Gardner claimed that the reasonable accommodation he sought was a three-month extension of his job-protected leave so that he could return to work at the end of August 2013 or beginning of September 2013. However, he claimed that FedEx failed to make any effort to determine whether a reasonable accommodation could be made for his disability and thus, failed to engage in an interactive process under the Fair Employment and Housing Act. FedEx contended that it did engage in an interactive process to find other positions/accommodations for Gardner. Specifically, it claimed that during Gardner’s personal/job-search leave, FedEx offered Gardner five available part-time driver positions, four of which were at his former work location, but that Gardner rejected each of the positions. Thus, FedEx claimed that Gardner was terminated on Feb. 17, 2014., Gardner was removed from his position in 2013. Thus, Gardner, age 48 at the time of trial, sought recovery of $1.1 million in lost wages, plus an unspecified amount for his future emotional distress and personal damages. He also sought recovery of punitative damages.
COURT
United States District Court, Northern District, San Francisco, CA
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