Disability discrimination applies beyond workplaces and ensuring that all employees have fair and equal access to their business. Federal laws, supplemented by California statutes, protect the rights of physically disabled people to be equal customers, visitors and consumers of publicly available services.
Lawsuits to stop and correct disability discrimination have an effect beyond compensating the direct victim of a practice that restricts his or her access. The elimination of designs and processes that keep out disabled people is good for the whole community, as it encourages increased understanding and use of the protective laws.
A woman bound to a wheelchair for transport has sued a Fresno hotel and its managing company for disability discrimination. Specifically, the plaintiff is alleging violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act by not providing full and equal access in a safe manner to all public functions of the hotel.
The disabled woman claims that architectural barriers and a lack of facilities that are compliant with the ADA prevented her from booking and staying in a room at the hotel. The laws in question guarantee full access to public accommodations, which the hotel allegedly did not provide.
The suit presses for nominal damages and the costs associated with the case, as well as the hotel’s rectification of the deficient places and processes.
The victims of disability discrimination in the workplace or public life have the right to sue for damages that would help make a person whole after a harmful experience and encourage businesses to adhere to ADA regulations. An attorney can help possible plaintiffs organize their cases and file the appropriate documents.
Source: Northern California Record, “Disabled woman accuses Fresno hotel of disability discrimination,” Jenie Mallari-Torres, accessed March 14, 2018
