Brewery fires bartender because he had cancer, suit says. He was ‘fully able to work’

A brewery in western New York is accused of firing two bartenders within a week because of their medical conditions. But both men were cleared to do their jobs, according to the federal agency in charge of protecting workers against discrimination.

Jeffrey Arnold was fired from the New York Beer Project’s brewery in Victor in September 2020, after he was diagnosed with lymphoma, a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says. The company runs three other locations in New York, and one in Orlando, Florida.

Arnold was “ready and willing to return to work” in July 2020 after New York Beer Project furloughed employees in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a complaint filed in federal court.

That July, as the brewery was preparing to reopen, Arnold told a new general manager he had cancer and began chemotherapy treatment, and that this wouldn’t restrict him, the complaint states.

But Arnold was never scheduled to work after this, following months of unpaid leave, then he was fired. According to the complaint, the New York Beer Project let Arnold go because he had cancer.

William Jones, another bartender, was fired from the Victor brewery a few days after Arnold because he disclosed he had a seizure in his sleep that stemmed from a traumatic brain injury in a motorcycle accident, the complaint says.

Despite providing New York Beer Project with doctor’s notes showing that he was cleared to work, the company considered him disabled, the EEOC charges.

New York Beer Project “wrongly feared” Jones “would have a seizure at work,” and wouldn’t schedule him, then fired him, the agency said in an April 24 news release announcing the lawsuit.

Both Arnold and Jones were “fully able to work,” according to the EEOC, which accuses New York Beer Project of discriminating against the men over their medical conditions. This kind of discrimination violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.

In a statement to McClatchy News on April 25, New York Beer Project spokeswoman Olivia Krupski said:

“New York Beer Project has never, nor will it ever, discriminate against any employee based on a medical condition or any other characteristic. Period. We’re disturbed by these baseless accusations and will vigorously defend ourselves.”

According to the lawsuit, the company offered different reasons regarding Arnold and Jones’ firings.

The general manager, who learned of Arnold’s lymphoma diagnosis, told the owners of New York Beer Project that Arnold was fired over “negative staff feedback,” the complaint states.

However, there was no record of any negative feedback in Arnold’s employee file, according to the complaint.

“Arnold had never had a performance review, and did not work after he told (the manager) about his disability,” the complaint states.

Meanwhile, New York Beer Project accused Jones of being “disrespectful and insubordinate,” and that this was the reason behind his termination, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit argues that “outbursts and strong language” were common at the brewery and happened “without rebuke.”

Arnold and Jones lost their bartending jobs “because of their disability and/or perceived disability,” the EEOC contends in the complaint.

“An employer cannot substitute their own judgment when an employee is capable of working,” said Jeffrey Burstein, the regional attorney for the EEOC’s New York district office. “The ADA protects workers from such baseless fears and stereotypes.”

New York Beer Project hasn’t responded to the complaint in court as of April 25, as the case was newly filed.

New York Beer Project’s brewery in Victor is about a 20-mile drive southeast of Rochester.

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