Inclusion Daily Express -- Telemarketing Firm To Pay Blind Woman $200,000 For Rejecting Her Guide Dog

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Telemarketing Firm To Pay Blind Woman $200,000 For Rejecting Her Guide Dog
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
December 21, 2005

NAPERVILLE, ILLINOIS--A blind woman has won a $200,000 settlement from a telemarketing company that refused to consider her job application after she brought her guide dog to an interview.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a federal discrimination lawsuit in August 2004 on behalf of Ginny Quick against Americall Group of Naperville.

Quick, who was qualified for the position and reads Braille, claimed that after she brought her guide dog to her job interview in 2002, she received a letter from the company saying Americall would not allow the dog in the workplace.

In addition to the $200,000 for Quick, Americall Group agreed to train its managers and human resource employees on disability laws, and offered to seek additional qualified employment applicants through the Chicago Lighthouse for People who are Blind or Visually Impaired.

"This case should send a message to employers not to close their doors to disabled applicants and the service animals they use," said EEOC attorney Gregory M. Gochanour.

The company admitted no wrongdoing in the settlement, which was announced Monday.

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