Wisconsin Grocer to Settle Lawsuit with HIV-positive Teen
SCHOFIELD, Wis. - A Quality Foods IGA in Schofield, Wis., has agreed to pay $90,000 to settle a lawsuit brought by a teenager who was fired when the manager found out she has HIV, The Associated Press reports.
On her first day as an employee at the store last March, Korrin Krause, 16, told the hiring manager she needed to take her breaks at certain times to take HIV medication. The manager called her mother to verify the girl has the virus, and then fired her, according to the AP.
The store's owner, Bernie Enkro, said the firing resulted from miscommunication, and he is glad the issue was settled, the AP reports.
The AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin, which helped Krause file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, said the store violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, which bars employers from asking about workers' HIV status or discriminating against those with the virus.
An EEOC official found reasonable cause in May to believe a violation had occurred. On Monday, the commission said the store would pay the teen-ager $1,000 in lost wages and $89,000 in emotional distress damages.
On her first day as an employee at the store last March, Korrin Krause, 16, told the hiring manager she needed to take her breaks at certain times to take HIV medication. The manager called her mother to verify the girl has the virus, and then fired her, according to the AP.
The store's owner, Bernie Enkro, said the firing resulted from miscommunication, and he is glad the issue was settled, the AP reports.
The AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin, which helped Krause file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, said the store violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, which bars employers from asking about workers' HIV status or discriminating against those with the virus.
An EEOC official found reasonable cause in May to believe a violation had occurred. On Monday, the commission said the store would pay the teen-ager $1,000 in lost wages and $89,000 in emotional distress damages.