Ohio-Based Toy Manufacturer Sued for Discrimination and Retaliation

Step2 Company, LLC, a toy and plastic products manufacturer with plants in Northern Ohio, violated federal law by failing to provide reasonable accommodations to a pregnant employee with disabilities and firing her, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit.

According to the suit, Step2 disciplined an assembly worker, who worked at the company’s Perrysville, Ohio facility, under its attendance policy when she was absent because of pregnancy-related medical conditions and took approved leave for chronic mental health conditions.

The suit alleges Step2 failed to accommodate the employee by excusing her pregnancy- and disability-related absences and also denied her requests to sit down briefly between assemblies, take more frequent breaks, and avoid working on highly physically strenuous assemblies because of her pregnancy or related medical conditions. Instead, Step2 retaliated against the worker for requesting accommodations, interfered with her ability to further seek reasonable accommodations, and then fired her in July 2024, the EEOC said.

The conduct alleged violates the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), which requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions unless they would cause undue hardship; it also violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which prohibits disability discrimination and requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities unless it would cause undue hardship.

The alleged conduct also violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, including pregnancy, childbirth, or pregnancy-related medical conditions; violates PWFA and ADA protections against retaliation; and violates PWFA prohibitions against interference with employees’ rights under the statute.

Source: EEOC

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