AGREES TO PAY $150,000 TO SETTLE PREGNANCY DISCRIMINATION CASE
Savage River Lodge, a Maryland hospitality business – which offers cabins for rent and operates a restaurant for guests – is alleged to have discriminated against a pregnant employee.
Apparently, the company refused to give the individual the accommodations she needed due to her pregnancy and fired her days after she suffered a miscarriage.
Believing that such conduct violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed suit against Savage River Lodge in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland (EEOC v. Savage River Lodge, LLC., et al, 1-23-cv-02510-GLR), seeking monetary damages and injunctive relief.
In addition to paying $150,000 penalty, the company offered the employee an apology, offered to rehire her and agreed to modify its employment related polices and practices, including offering specialized training on “on perinatal bereavement care and trauma-informed care.”
In a written statement, Debra Lawrence, regional attorney of the EEOC’s Philadelphia District Office noted that, “We commend [the employee] for her bravery in challenging this employer’s conduct and for entrusting the EEOC with remedying the violations of her civil rights …. Employers who fail to comply with federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination and retaliation must be held accountable.”
Do you think that has tamed the Savage?
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