Middlesex County-operated care center settles lawsuit over firing worker with disability

Suzanne Russell, MyCentralJersey.com
·2 min read

Roosevelt Care Centers has agreed to pay $50,000 to a former employee with a disability for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the U.S. Attorney's Office announced.

As part of the proposed consent decree awaiting court approval, Roosevelt Care Centers, a long-term care facility with locations in Edison and Old Bridge and operated by the Middlesex County Improvement Authority, will be required to train staff on the ADA and periodically submit reports about its compliance.

Middlesex County officials did not respond to request for comment.

The agreement resolves a lawsuit filed in federal court last year by a kitchen worker who claimed she was unlawfully fired from the Roosevelt Care Centers after a wrist and elbow injury suffered from using a broken dishwasher at the Old Bridge location prevented her from lifting objects weighing more than 20 pounds.

Before being fired the employee had worked at Roosevelt Care Centers for about 18 years and remained able to perform the essential functions of her job. Roosevelt Care Centers terminated her employment due to her disability without providing her a reasonable accommodation, the the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Roosevelt Care Center at Old Bridge was the first long-term care facility in New Jersey to vaccinate residents and staff.
Roosevelt Care Center at Old Bridge was the first long-term care facility in New Jersey to vaccinate residents and staff.

According to the lawsuit, from 1998 to 2013 the employee worked in the laundry unit at the Edison location. When the laundry unit closed, she moved to the Old Bridge location and from Oct. 1, 2013 until her termination on Oct. 7, 2016, she worked in the kitchen where the job entailed preparing meals for residents, loading them on trays for delivery to patients and clearing the trays returned to the kitchen.

Around April 4, 2016, the employee injured her right wrist and elbow while using a broken kitchen dishwasher. A hand specialist diagnosed cartilage tear symptoms in her right wrist and in the medial epicondylitis of her right elbow. The worker sought treatment but still experienced pain pushing and pulling dishes through the dishwasher. Additional treatment improved her condition, but a hand specialist restricted her to lifting 20 pounds, which the care center said it could not accommodate, according to the lawsuit.

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“Qualified individuals with disabilities must be given an equal opportunity to be part of the workforce,” U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said in a statement. “This settlement reflects the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s commitment to ending discriminatory employment practices and protecting the civil rights of all employees under the Americans with Disabilities Act.”

Title I of the ADA prohibits employers from discriminating against a qualified individual based on a disability. An employer may not demote, terminate or deny employment opportunities to an employee who is otherwise qualified if the demotion or termination is based on the need to make reasonable accommodations for the employee.

Email: srussell@gannettnj.com

Suzanne Russell is a breaking news reporter for MyCentralJersey.com covering crime, courts and other mayhem. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Middlesex NJ care center settles lawsuit for firing disabled worker