(Photo not that of the client; name changed for privacy.)
“Janie,” 65, had worked for the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) for more than 40 years, during which she developed mobility problems. By way of accommodation, she was given a permit that enabled her to park in a reserved space near the employee entrance and was provided a motorized scooter to get around the building. With these aides, she was able to perform her job.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she was allowed to work from home for 10 months, during which these accommodations were not needed. When she returned to the office, her supervisor told her that USPS could no longer accommodate her with a parking permit or allow her to use one of their motorized scooters.
With help from her union shop steward, she filed a grievance but the accommodations were not restored. During a second appeal, Janie began to experience harassment and retaliation by her supervisor and her supervisor’s boss, who withheld approval for sick time despite her having over 240 hours of accrued paid leave. They also refused to upgrade her computer equipment although there was an office-wide initiative to upgrade all IT hardware at the facility. Most devastating to Janie, who had always received stellar performance reviews, was a negative evaluation, which referred to her disability as hindering her work performance.
Janie then contacted the USPS Equal Employment Opportunity investigator so as to file a charge claiming age and disability discrimination, as well as retaliation. The USPS EEO investigator gave her a short window of time to complete a 69-page questionnaire to describe the bases for her charges.
That’s when Janie contacted JALA, where attorney Edith Jones had less than five days to help Janie with this questionnaire, which was submitted within an hour of the deadline. While the USPS EEO office was proceeding with its investigation, Jones contacted the union for the purpose of “igniting” the Step Two grievance process. She gave the local union president an overview of ADA and explained why she believed USPS had not only violated the statute but engaged in unlawful retaliation.
After this presentation, the local union president quickly scheduled a Step Two grievance meeting with senior management, a Union representative and Janie. This meeting resulted in directing Janie’s supervisor to restore her accommodations in terms of the parking permit and the use of the motorized scooter. In addition, her unpaid leave was converted to “paid” leave, and her performance evaluation was reviewed and modified. Immediately thereafter, Janie notified the USPS EEO investigator as to this favorable outcome, and he indicated that a similar result will soon be forthcoming from its offices. Now, Janie believes she can comfortably work another two or three years for USPS, after which she intends to retire and enjoy her grandchildren.
About Jacksonville Area Legal Aid
Jacksonville Area Legal Aid is a nonprofit law firm focused on delivering economic, social, and housing justice to low-income and at-risk individuals and families on the First Coast.
If you are an attorney wanting to volunteer with probate and heirs property issues, contact JALA Pro Bono Director Aaron Irving, at (904) 356-8371, Ext. 363, or Aaron.Irving@jaxlegalaid.org.
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