A former employee of a New York Walmart says she was unlawfully disciplined and terminated because of her disability.
Plaintiff Mary L. says that after more than nine years of employment, Walmart suddenly fired her and took back its contributions to her 401k savings plan, all because her disability made her work slower than other employees.
She is raising claims for discrimination and retaliation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA.
Mary suffers from Turner Syndrome, a rare genetic condition that can cause many different problems like heart defects, learning disabilities, short stature, bone structure defects, and social adjustment problems. Individualsย with Turner Syndrome generally need ongoing medical care throughout their lives.
Because of her condition, Mary developed scoliosis at a young age and stopped growing when she was only 4โ7โ tall. She also has swollen hands, a heart murmur and a minor nonverbal learning disability. According to the ADA lawsuit, Turner Syndrome limits Maryโs physical movements and causes her to move more slowly.
For most of the nine and a half years she worked at Walmart, Maryโs disability caused no significant problems at work. She starting working for Walmart in Lowville, N.Y. in November 2005, initially in the bakery and sometimes helping out in the deli department.
At the time she was hired, Walmart was fully aware of her disability, she claims. Maryย says her supervisors regularly allowed her extra time to complete her assigned tasks to compensate for the way her disability slowed her down.
Mary says that for nine years she had a strong track record of good performance on the job, and her annual Walmart performance evaluations were all positive.
But in 2014, she says, a new assistant manager began to confront her about her slower pace and the extra time she needed to complete tasks.
In May of that year, Mary says sheย submitted a written request for a reasonable accommodation, asking for an extra 30 minutesย per shift in which to complete her work. Walmart denied that request about a month later, offering no reasons or evidence to support the denial, she says.
Furthermore, Mary claimsย within a few weeks of that denial her supervisors began to pepper her with additional warnings and coaching in excess of what she had received in the previous nine years of her Walmart employment. Her performance reviews went from โsolid performanceโ to โneeds improvementโ and โunsatisfactory,โ she claims.
With no particular warning, Mary says Walmart terminated her employment in April 2015.
In addition to losing her job, Mary also says she lost valuable benefits. Upon her termination, Walmart allegedly withdrew all the funds it had contributed to her 401k savings plan over the nine-plus years she worked there โ an amount totaling more than $12,000.
Mary further claimsย she lost the shares of Walmart stock that she had been able to buy with paycheck deductions. In addition, the lawsuit states that Mary lost her company-sponsored health insurance and now relies on Medicaid for her health care. She has also had to file for bankruptcy.
Mary argues the discipline and termination she was subject to constitutes unlawful disability discrimination in violation of Title II of the ADA. She accuses Walmart of unlawfully retaliating against her for requesting a reasonable accommodation.
She is asking the court for an award of damages and all other relief available under the ADA, including reimbursement of her attorneyโs fees.
The plaintiffย is represented by attorney Stephen Ciotoli of OโHara OโConnell & Ciotoli.
The Walmart Employee Disability Discrimination Lawsuit isย Mary L. v. Wal-Mart Stores East LP, Case No. 7:16-cv-1544, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York.
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19 thoughts onWalmart Discriminates Against Disabled Employees, Lawsuit Claims
Iam 34 years old I have 16 years in retail management experience. Been at Wal-Mart for 4 years 2 promotions retail management is my career. A year and half ago I got diagnosed with major depressive disorder.so when the depression comes it causes me to stay in bed and literally sleep for 3 to 4 days straight for the most part. I canโt get up to shower take care of kids ect. The end of December 2022 I started having severe migraines that caused me to throw up and be in bed I couldnโt lift my head I had them everyday which at the same time my depression kicked in and it was the worst it was ever before I was in that depression state From January 2023 to April 29th2023 I missed alot of work due my migraines and depression sedgwick denied my claim bc I filed for the wrong type of claim which I was unaware of. I come back to work after my leave and my manager said I was demoted due to my absences. My career is over !!! The very next day and 3 days following I felt the happiest I ever felt in my life. I had so much energy I couldnโt sleep I was awake for 57 hours took sleeping pills nothing almost got hospitalized. Spend $400 online in one night on random stuff. Seen a psychiatrist in middle of May. She said They triggered me to have a manic episode when they said I was being demoted. Never had one in my life I will forever have bipolor. Because I have these up and down alot I canโt function correctly my marriage of 17 years is falling apart. Spend all my saving. Iโm in debt now. This bipolor disorder destroyed my whole life in less 2 months.
Was fired after being placed on loa for over a year and Sedgwick would not offer me reasonable accommodations so I could come back.
I was on medical leave when I was fired.
I was thinking about quitting my part time job I have now and going to Walmart. I have muscular dystrophy. After reading these article I will keep my job I have now. Iโm glad I read this and sorry for these people who were treated this way.
I have gone through this and am still my managers new I had anxiety and would push me to far everyday to make me break and one day I did and now I was denied all my disability for short term and they laugh , because I was in hospital and cannot go back to walmart
I was always scheduled at the highest point of a day and weekend on the busiest days of the months, with my disability.
Sad, especially since they knew of conditions and whatโs a lousy 30 min. They claim to be E.O.C they collect extra for hiring special needs, donโt see how they could have taken back 401, I have mobility issues myself, both jobs donโt seem to mind,some of their low level managers need sensitive training,no respect, so wish her the best!!!!
I quite because they threatened to fire me if I didnโt find someone to cover my shift the day I had surgery for my skin cancer. I received a letter that I had been fired but I called and quit. A letter was sent, by my mother actually, to the company so that if needed, it would be shown in my file, but we never received a response. Who knows, they probably threw it away.