Papa John's Pizza to pay $175K to blind Athens ex-employee to settle discrimination lawsuit
Signage outside a Papa Johns International Inc. pizza restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S., on Monday, Feb. 22, 2021. (Photographer: Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
ATHENS, Ga. - Papa John's Pizza will pay an Athens man $175,000 to settle a lawsuit in which he claims they fired him over his use of a service dog.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says Michael Barnes applied for a job at one of the chain's locations in Athens in early 2020.
Barnes is legally blind and relies on his service dog for his commute.
The EEOC says Barnes was fired before even working a single shift because Papa John's wouldn't accommodate his request to bring his service dog to work.
Officials determined that Barnes' firing violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Papa John's will now pay Barnes $175,000, provide ADA training to employees, and allow the EEOC to monitor any possible cases or discrimination of retaliation.
"Not allowing blind and visually impaired people to travel to and from work in the way that affords them confidence and independence is akin to telling sighted workers who rely on the flexibility and independence of driving that they may not travel to work by car," said Karla Gilbride, the EEOC’s general counsel. "We are glad that Papa John’s has agreed to provide training to its employees and hope that in the future, no other job applicant who uses a service dog will experience the discrimination that Mr. Barnes faced."