EEOC Guidance on Employer COVID-19 Vaccine Incentive Programs
Lawmakers and many employer organizations have urged the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) to issue guidance to companies that are considering providing incentives to employees who get the COVID-19 vaccine. In response, just a few days ago Carol Miaskoff, the EEOC’s acting legal counsel, stated that the agency expects to update its technical assistance to address these issues, but that the work is still ongoing.
Department of Children, Youth and Family Services to Pay $300,000 Settlement Following Discrimination Investigation
The Washington Department of Children, Youth and Family Services has agreed to pay a $300,000 settlement after an investigation found it failed to provide appropriate services for deaf family members during high stakes meetings with social workers, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington. The Department of Justice’s investigation into the agency’s Child Welfare Program found evidence of failures to provide assistance, including sign language interpreters, on more than 100 occasions between 2017 and 2019, the release said.
Combating Voter Suppression Against Voters with Disabilities
Access Ready Inc. announced that in conjunction with its Partner organizations it has taken the first steps toward opening discussions with the state of Maryland concerning the accessibility of pollbooks slated for procurement by the state.
Electronic pollbooks are computer systems that allow voters to check themselves in at the polls, a process that requires voters to enter private information. As is true also of voting machines, a pollbook that cannot be operated by voters with disabilities without assistance denies those voters the right to privacy that is guaranteed to all voters.