A former housekeeping Cast Member is suing Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, alleging he was unjustly fired and discriminated in opposition to, Katie Rice of the Orlando Sentinel stories.
Stevel Smith, 52, has kind two diabetes and labored at Disney’s Yacht and Beach Club Resorts. He alleges within the lawsuit, filed in Orlando federal court docket on January 11, that his managers violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Diabetes is taken into account a protected situation below the ADA, which requires employers to supply “reasonable accommodations” for employees with disabilities, and prohibits discrimination and retaliation in opposition to them.
Smith started working at Walt Disney World in 2013. He had been working at Yacht and Beach membership since September 2017.
Smith states that in his roughly two years there, he was denied easy accessibility to his remedy and non-employee restrooms, resulting in him urinating on himself a number of occasions at work.
Managers reportedly mentioned, “I don’t care about diabetes” and “If you take your medication, you can go home.”
In October 2019, a supervisor reportedly moved Smith’s remedy to a locker out of his attain.
In the identical month, Smith requested to go away a shift early as a result of he felt faint. A supervisor denied the request, saying, “You don’t look sick.”
Smith says he harm his again in November 2019 after a supervisor assigned him further work.
Smith, a Black Jamaican, additionally complained of racism from his fellow Cast Members. He claims a supervisor reprimanded him in January 2018 for complaining about racism from coworkers and made him clear the inventory room of their place. A number of months later, one other supervisor instructed him to cover from the overall supervisor in a closet, saying Smith didn’t “look presentable” and “If you don’t disappear, you’ll see what I’ll do.”
He met with administration no less than 4 occasions in regards to the incidents and concerned his union consultant however points continued.
Smith was fired in March 2020, with managers claiming he didn’t do his assigned duties twice. He claims that is false and the firing was really as a result of his complaints in regards to the above points.
Smith says he skilled psychological and emotional misery as a result of these experiences. He presently works as a part-time rideshare driver and “cries every time he passes Disney.” He is demanding a jury trial and looking for an unspecified quantity in damages.
His lawyer, Brett Kaplan, wrote in an e-mail to the Orlando Sentinel, “We fully intend to prove that Disney subjected Mr. Smith to an abusive environment because of his disabilities and that he was terminated for complaining of same. We commend Mr. Smith — a kind, gentle, and hardworking person — for coming forward and discussing his experience. We look forward to presenting our client’s claims in court, telling his story, and ultimately, holding Disney accountable.”
Disney declined to reply to the allegations outdoors of court docket.
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