Hospital sued for firing nurse who required cancer treatment accommodations

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has charged Angel Medical Center, Inc. with disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The Franklin, NC-based hospital refused to accommodate a hospital employee who had cancer and fired her.

According to the EEOC's lawsuit, Susan Williams worked for Angel Medical Center starting on Dec. 7, 2009 as a full-time registered nurse.  In December 2011, Williams returned to work following extensive treatment for cancer.  At the time she returned to work, she still had five chemotherapy treatments to undergo.  According to the suit, Williams sought an accommodation that would allow her to complete the needed chemotherapy treatments while remaining a full-time employee.  The EEOC alleges that the hospital refused to accommodate Williams and instead terminated her employment.

This alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which protects employees from discrimination based on their disabilities and requires employers to provide disabled employees with reasonable accommodations unless doing so would be an undue hardship for the employer.  The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, Bryson City Division (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Angel Medical Center, Inc.; Civil Action No. 2:13-CV-00034) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.  The EEOC seeks back pay, compensatory and punitive damages and injunctive relief.

Read here: Hospital Sued by EEOC for Refusing Accommodation to & Firing Employee with Cancer

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