Echostar (The dish Network) has denied a customer service job to a blind
job candidate because he is a slow Braille reader even though he has good
technology skills.  The government is suing Echostar after the company's
attorneys aggressively insist that the candidate is unqualified.  This
lawsuit centers around the issue of whether an employer has to
demonstrate that having good Braille skills is essential for a blind
worker to perform adequately on a customer service job even though he is
skilled with adaptive technology.  Are we putting too much faith in this
technology and expect too much from it and not recognizing the benefits
of Braille or are other options just as effective as Braille, depending
on the learning style of the person?

Kelly


March 21, 2002
EEOC Files Suit Against EchoStar

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DENVER (AP) -- The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit in
U.S. District Court Thursday accusing EchoStar Communications Corp. of
violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing
to accommodate a blind job applicant.

The satellite TV company said it had not seen the lawsuit and could not
comment.

The law bars employers from discriminating against qualified applicants
with disabilities and requires them to make reasonable accommodations.

The lawsuit said Dale Alton applied to be an EchoStar customer-service
representative in February 1999 after six months of training.

Alton said he told EchoStar about adaptive software that could be used to
accommodate his disability.

The lawsuit said EchoStar would not give Alton an application and said it
could not accommodate his blindness.

After Alton filed a complaint with the EEOC, EchoStar invited Alton to
take two employment tests. EchoStar provided Alton with a test in Braille
but not with someone to read the test to him, as Alton had requested.

Later, EchoStar allegedly told Alton it would not hire him because he was
too slow at reading Braille. Alton has said he has poor Braille skills.

EEOC regional attorney Joseph Mitchell said the ability to read Braille
is unrelated to working as an EchoStar customer service representative.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified back pay for Alton or pay in lieu of hiring
him and asks EchoStar to provide equal employment opportunities for
applicants with disabilities.


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