Deaf Seattle Man's Lawsuit Forces Safeway To Fix Hiring Practices

SEATTLE, WA — Safeway has settled a lawsuit brought on behalf of a deaf Seattle man over how the grocer hires and interviews disabled people. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued Safeway on behalf of Joel Sibert, who in 2017 applied for jobs at the East John Street grocery store in the Capitol Hill neighborhood.

A hiring manager for the store contacted Sibert for an interview, and he asked for an interpreter to be present. That's when the hiring process stalled. Sibert never got the job, and Safeway hired non-deaf people for the job he had applied for, according to the EEOC.

"[W]hen I requested an interpreter during my interview and placed multiple calls to the store over the following week, I was placed on hold or told no one was available. I felt so disregarded. I’m glad Safeway is taking steps to make their workplace more inclusive," Sibert said in a statement.

The EEOC sued under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Safeway will pay Sibert $75,000, and will make changes to its hiring website to better accommodate the disabled. Also, Safeway employees, including recruiters, will get ADA accommodation training. Safeway will be under a three-year consent decree with the EEOC to ensure the policy changes are completed.