Nationwide medical transportation company American Medical Response Ambulance Service, Inc. (AMR) will pay $162,500 and provide other relief to settle a federal pregnancy discrimination lawsuit filed by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). According to the EEOC’s suit, a paramedic, who worked for AMR in Spokane, Wash., requested light duty for the last part of her pregnancy and supplied a doctor’s note in support. AMR denied her request. Rather than give her the light duty tasks it made available to its employees injured on the job, AMR directed the paramedic to take unpaid leave or work without any restrictions. Refusing to provide light duty to a pregnant employee when similarly abled, non-pregnant employees are permitted light duty violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA). After an investigation by the EEOC and after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process, the EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington (Case No.2:19-CV-00258-RMP). The employee intervened in the EEOC’s lawsuit after it was filed, bringing additional claims under federal and state law.
The two-and-one-half-year consent decree settling the lawsuit provides $162,500 in compensatory damages to the paramedic. The decree also requires AMR to provide anti-discrimination training on Title VII and the PDA to all its Washington supervisors, safety and human resources personnel, and employees at AMR’s Spokane facilities. AMR must revise its policies and procedures for Title VII compliance and post a notice for employees describing the company’s obligations under the consent decree and employee rights under Title VII and the PDA.
