EEOC Settlement: Sam’s Club to Pay $60,000 Over Disability Discrimination

Sam’s Club and its parent company Walmart have agreed to pay $60,000 and implement corrective measures to resolve a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The case involved a longtime employee at the Douglasville, Georgia, location who was fired after requesting temporary accommodations for injuries sustained in a car accident. Although she was able to perform her job with restrictions, management refused to allow her to continue working, denied her request for additional leave, and terminated her employment. The EEOC argued that this violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which requires reasonable accommodations regardless of how a disability arises. Under the consent decree, Sam’s Club must provide monetary relief, notify employees of their rights under the ADA, train managers on compliance, and report future denials of accommodation requests. The settlement underscores the EEOC’s commitment to enforcing the ADA and reminds employers that terminating workers rather than accommodating them can lead to costly consequences. See EEOC v. Sam’s East, Inc. and Walmart Inc., Case No. 1:25-CV-0222 (N.D. Ga).