A beauty manufacturing company fired a worker on her first day after finding out she was deaf, a federal agency says

• A company in Illinois fired a worker after it learned that she was deaf, the EEOC alleged.
• The worker lost her job on her very first day, the EEOC said in a disability-discrimination lawsuit.

A beauty manufacturing company in Illinois fired a worker on her first day on the job after finding out that she was deaf, according to a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The lawsuit says that the woman was placed by a staffing agency as a production worker at the Countryside, Illinois site of Voyant Beauty, a maker of skincare, hair, and bath products.

On the worker's first day, "Voyant learned that she was deaf and informed her that because she is deaf, Voyant was ending her employment there," the EEOC's lawsuit alleges.

The EEOC said in a press release on Tuesday that the worker was qualified for the job and could have performed its essential functions.

The EEOC alleged in the lawsuit, filed in September in the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, that by firing the worker, Voyant violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, which requires employers to make reasonable accommodations for disabilities.

Voyant denied the allegations.

Under a consent decree, signed by the parties and US District Judge Jeremy Daniel on Tuesday, Voyant agreed to pay the former worker $75,000, made up of $30,000 in back pay and $45,000 in compensatory damages.

Voyant also agreed to provide annual training to all supervisory staff on disability discrimination.

"While the company denies any wrongdoing, the settlement reinforces our dedication to a people-first culture that protects and values all employees and applicants," Voyant told Business Insider in a statement. "We are dedicated to creating a workplace where everyone feels welcome and valued, regardless of their background or abilities."

"Relying on unfounded stereotypes about an individual's disability in making employment decisions is illegal," Gregory Gochanour, regional attorney for the EEOC's Chicago District Office, said in a statement.

"A decision not to hire someone with a disability based on a safety concern must be based on an individualized assessment of the person's actual ability to safely perform the essential functions of the job, potentially with accommodations," he continued.