Brian Moore
Former Lt. Gov. candidate and state Rep. Brian Moore’s grocery store has settled a lawsuit brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging discrimination against a job applicant who had a learning disability.
Ranch Market, which is located in Clayton, denies any fault or wrongdoing in providing a $30,000 settlement to the job applicant, Moore announced today in a news release.
“We are one of the most diverse and equal-opportunity employers in our community,” Moore, who owns the grocery store, said. “Our non-discriminatory hiring practices are a model for others, and we are deeply grieved that anyone would think otherwise.”
The lawsuit alleged that the store didn’t hire Robert Harris in April 2008 to be a stocker and bagger because of a learning disability, in violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act.
“The EEOC’s investigation revealed that Clayton Ranch Market hired people with the same or similar qualifications as Mr. Harris, yet Mr. Harris, who sought employment with the store, was neither hired or contacted about a job,” the EEOC’s Rayford Ivrin said in a press release when the lawsuit was filed. “Employers cannot deny employment to qualified applicants because of disability.”
The lawsuit sought back wages, compensatory and punitive damages and the institution and carrying out of a company policy prohibiting discrimination against those with disabilities.
As part of the settlement, Ranch Market agreed to provide training to employees and management staff, Moore’s news release said, adding that Ranch Market “already provides training for its employees but feels that additional training will benefit all staff.”
“As part of their ongoing work to encourage diversity and non-discrimination in hiring, Ranch Market is also opening up the training to other businesses in Clayton so that other employers may better understand lawful hiring practices,” the release states.
Moore said such lawsuits highlight how well-meaning policies designed to encourage equal opportunity can be misused.
“There needs to be a mechanism for not hiring someone who’s simply not the right person for the job without it being interpreted as discrimination,” Moore said. “A knee-jerk assumption of discrimination, as was the case here, is as dangerous as failing to hire qualified disabled people.”