Workers with disabilities are pursuing a class action suit alleging that they are being discriminated against by the unlikeliest of employers: the Social Security Administration.
About 2,000 employees with disabilities ranging from deafness to paralysis and intellectual disability are expected to be part of the class that’s suing. This group includes employees who say they were passed over for promotions since August 2005 despite being on a government “best qualified” list.
In one case, an employee who is deaf and has worked for Social Security for more than 20 years says he’s never been promoted despite making the “best qualified” list many times and applying for several advancement opportunities.
The lawsuit was originally approved for class action status by an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission administrative law judge in 2008, but Social Security appealed. This month, however, the EEOC again said plaintiffs should be allowed to establish a class and the suit is now expected to go to trial, reports The Baltimore Sun. To read more click here.
The SSA often Discriminates on JOBs,– especially when it comes to Hiring and/or Training entry-level DISABLED Citizens! – The so-called State agencies related to, and working with the SSA,- ar even More Discriminatory, Un-Regulated, Mis-Managed,- and Anti-Disabled! – Just try to get a Job with the Ohio Disability Determination Office!- What a Joke,- especially if You are DISABLED,- and Not already a hiree of the entrenched establishment Controllers!! — Congress needs to investigate these so-called State agencies that are suppose to be working with/for the SSA!? – So much Discrimination against the DISABLED entry level Job seeker!! — You better have a relative or friend already working for the Ohio Bureau of Disability Determination, – or You wil never get a Job offer, let alone training or a position. – They hire from within, from their’ pals, relatives, and often un-educated cohorts.
This is merely the “tip of the tip” of the iceberg of discrimination issues which today continue to adversely affect thousands of persons with hearing loss and other ADA-recognized disabilities in workplaces all across America, despite the advent of the ADA into law 20 years ago. However, within the overall demographic context, persons with deafness and hearing-loss disabilities constitute a tiny political minority of the active workforce, and therein lies a large part of the problem. The larger society needs to recognize this point, and until our courts of law do likewise, enforcement of the workplace rights of persons affected by the prevailing conditions will suffer. This potentially landmark SSA class action proceeding is a clear step in the right direction, and it provides us with a foundation and mandate for continuing progressive action on disability rights in the workplace.