Cloverland enters consent decree with EEOC over disabled parking

Cloverland Farms Dairy entered a consent decree with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on Tuesday to settle a lawsuit over the company’s decision to require three employees with disabilities to park in an employee lot rather than in reserved parking spaces for the disabled.

The EEOC concluded earlier this year there was cause to believe the Americans with Disabilities Act was violated when Baltimore-based Cloverland prohibited three maintenance mechanics from parking in spots reserved for people with disabilities.

The employees, Michael Brown, Barry Vitek and James Wancowicz, all have documented disabilities and have disability parking permits from the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration, according to the complaint. Cloverland requested the employees have updated disability parking placards in July 2017 and issued letters asking them to contact their physicians for opinions on whether they could perform their jobs because of the “seriousness” of their disabilities.

The employees complied and submitted letters confirming they were capable of doing their assigned work, at which point they were informed they could not park in the dairy’s disabled parking spaces because their doctors did not request any medical restrictions, according to the complaint.

The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court in Baltimore on Sept. 7 and Judge George L. Russell III signed off on the consent decree Tuesday. A spokesperson for the EEOC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

As part of the consent decree, which will be in effect for two years, Cloverland agreed to pay each employee $25,000 in compensatory damages and refrain from denying reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals. The two employees still working at the facility, Brown and Vitek, will be permitted to park in the disabled spots so long as they have proper permits from the MVA.

Cloverland will also implement and maintain a written policy prohibiting discrimination, including procedures for employees to request accommodations, and train supervisors and managers on ADA compliance. Reports will be due to the EEOC twice a year.

Cloverland is represented by Steven D. Frenkil of Miles & Stockbridge PC in Baltimore. He was not immediately available for comment.

The case is U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Cloverland Dairy Limited Partnership, 1:18-cv-02759.