A South Sound company sued for turning away a deaf job applicant settles EEOC lawsuit

A South Sound company accused of turning away a warehouse worker because he is deaf has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The EEOC sued Logic Staffing last year in U.S. District Court in Tacoma. Judge Ronald Leighton signed the consent decree that settles the lawsuit Friday.

The staffing and recruiting company will pay $170,000 and will make changes to its hiring policy and procedures, the EEOC said Monday in a press release.

The EEOC said the company has offices in Tacoma, Sumner and Kent, and that it placed more than 900 temporary employees in 2017.

“The EEOC’s investigation found that when a well-qualified job applicant used Video Relay Service to return a call to the recruiter, he was told that his inability to hear would pose a safety risk,” the release said. “Although the applicant repeatedly explained that he had successfully performed similar work in the past without any safety issues, the recruiter stated that Logic Staffing did not hire people who are deaf and ended the call.”

As part of the settlement, the staffing and recruiting company will hire an Americans with Disabilities Act consultant.

“This result allows this worker to move on with the reassurance that the law protects his right to pursue work he is well qualified to do, while the changes in policies, procedures and training at Logic Staffing ensure that future applicants with disabilities can be judged by their merits and qualifications,” EEOC attorney John Stanley said in the release.