A former Apple Store Genius who uses a wheelchair claims that Apple breaks disability law in its treatment of employees by failing to properly accommodate their needs…
Patently Apple reports that Canadian Robert Shaw is suing Apple for constructive dismissal.
His lawyer Andrew Monkhouse said that Apple is guilty of discrimination, and failing to live up to its own accessibility standards.
Robert Shaw alleges in a Statement of Claim that Apple repeatedly refused to work on an individual accommodation plan with him, opting instead to provide piecemeal solutions to his disability.
Specifically, Apple is said to have failed to provide a working table of the appropriate height for a wheelchair user and to have failed to make proper adaptions to the doors Shaw needed to use.
Remarking on the irony of Apple’s alleged failure to accommodate Robert Shaw, Andrew Monkhouse stated: “On its company website, Apple proudly displays its work on accessibility technology. Apple has also used their work on accessibility in its marketing materials. The company has received awards and a great deal of positive press for its efforts in accessibility technology. Yet, these accusations seem to indicate that the company does not appear to be practicing what it preaches in its own retail stores.”
Apple places a high priority on making its products accessible to those with a wide range of disabilities. It has won multiple awards for its work in this area and frequently speaks on the topic, most recently stating that it wants to ‘level the playing field‘ for everyone. A claim that Apple breaks disability law is a surprising one, and it’ll be interesting to see how the case unfolds.
The Claim also states that Robert was told by a senior manager at Apple that he wouldn’t be promoted if he continued to be unhappy in his role. The manager further suggested the company might not be the right place for him.
