A California court recently ruled that an employer’s failure to accommodate an employee’s disability on one single day, even though the employee had been appropriately accommodated for months before that, can still result in employer liability.
The employer dropped the ball, the court said, by failing to notify all managers of the employee’s accommodation needs.
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Following her cancer treatments, an Albertsons store checker identified only as “A.M.” needed to have constant access to drinking water throughout the day. As a result, she needed to be frequently relieved from her cash register station to take bathroom breaks. For months, A.M.’s managers had relieved her whenever needed.
On one day, Kellie Sampson, a temporary manager, was in charge of the store during A.M.’s shift. Sampson was the only person working in the store during the shift that was authorized to relieve A.M. at her cash register. Sampson had not been notified of A.M.’s disability, or need for accommodation.
When A.M. called Sampson to relieve her for a bathroom break, Sampson replied that she was busy revieving inventory and A.M. would have to wait. Sampson gave the same reply to A.M.’s repeated requests to be relieved. Finally, A.M. was unable to refrain from urinating on herself while standing at her cash register. When Sampson did eventually come to relieve her, A.M. ran home humiliated and ashamed.
A.M. sued alleging that Albertsons failed to accommodate her disability. Albertsons argued that a single occurrence could not constitute a violation of the accommodation laws. The jury, and the court of appeals, disagreed. The jury’s award of $200,000 to A.M., mostly for emotional distress damages, was upheld by the court.
We’ll have more on this case in an upcoming edition of California Employer Advisor.