EEOC sues Hiland Dairy

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission today filed suit against Springfield-based Hiland Dairy Foods Co. LLC.

The lawsuit alleges disability discrimination over the refusal to hire a man at the company’s Norman, Oklahoma, plant, according to a news release. The man was not named by the EEOC.

EEOC officials allege in the suit that the company knew the man had a vision impairment when he was offered a dairy plant worker position on the condition that he pass a pre-employment and medical scan. The suit alleges the doctor responsible for administering the exam disqualified the man as a "safety concern," despite not examining him. Hiland then withdrew the job offer, EEOC officials say, alleging the company and the doctor failed to consider whether assistive devices or other accommodations could mitigate potential safety concerns.

The suit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma alleges violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act, according to the release.

“The purpose of Title I of the ADA is to ensure people with disabilities have an equal opportunity to work to their full ability, unencumbered by myths, fears and stereotypes related to their conditions,” said Andrea Baran, the EEOC’s regional attorney in St. Louis, in the release. “Millions of American workers with vision impairments successfully perform a wide range of jobs, and everyone is entitled to that opportunity.”

Through the suit, the EEOC is seeking monetary relief and an instatement for the job applicant, as well as an order prohibiting future discriminatory conduct toward disabled individuals, according to the release.

A Hiland Dairy spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment by deadline.