Navitas Systems, LLC, an Ann Arbor, Michigan battery manufactu
er, will pay $95,000 and furnish other relief to resolve a disability discri
mination lawsuit filed
by the U.S. Equal O
pportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced.
According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, Navitas maintained a pol
icy which required any employee returning from medical leave to be 100% free from restrictions. An employee suffe
red severe injuries to his left arm; his doctor temporarily restricte
d him from using his lef
t arm but cleared him to return to work using his other arm. The employee could have completed the essential fu
nctions of
his position using only one arm, but Navitas applied its policy, re
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fused to allow him to return to work and fired him.
Such alleged conduct violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (A
DA), which prohibits employment discrimination based on disability. The
EEOC filed suit (Case No. 2:24-cv-12478 in U.S. District Court for the Eas
tern District of Mich
igan) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.
Under the three-y
will pay $95,000 in monetary damages to the employee, provide
annual training on the ADA to all managers, supervisors and hu
man resources personnel, and submit annual reports to the EEOC regarding reasonable accommodatio
n requests and employees returning to work following medical leave
. Navitas has already eliminated the “100% restriction free” policy.