Federal authorities sue FedEx, alleging injured workers were illegally denied housing

An injured FedEx driver in Minnesota says she was placed on unpaid sick leave and then fired without being offered any accommodations to return to work, despite her requests.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is now suing the delivery giant on behalf of Wendy Gulley and other drivers across the country, alleging that FedEx violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The federal complaint filed in Minnesota last week claims that ramp haul drivers with medical restrictions are subject to a “100% recovery” policy and “are not provided with reasonable accommodations and are instead placed on unpaid medical leave and/or terminated.”

Ramp transport drivers transport packages between airports and FedEx terminals.

The company’s policy “cost qualified workers their livelihoods without giving them individual consideration,” EEOC attorney Gregory Gochanour said in a news release. “Employers have an obligation to explore reasonable accommodations and not to screen out qualified individuals with disabilities who can do their jobs.”

FedEx said in a statement that the company is committed to “complying with all requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act.”

Gulley, who worked at a FedEx plant in Minneapolis, injured her hip, back and Achilles tendon in 2019. She was first assigned to a temporary position that summer and then placed on unpaid medical leave later that fall. She was fired in April 2021, according to the complaint.

After Gulley filed a complaint with the EEOC earlier this year, the agency had “reasonable grounds to believe that FedEx violated the ADA,” according to the complaint. No settlement was reached.