Werner Enterprises has lost on appeal in a case that at one point saw it facing a $36 million penalty for not hiring a deaf driver–later reduced by a federal court–who had gone through a company training program.
The financial stakes in the case brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act are now about $372,000, a far cry from a jury’s decision in 2023 to award deaf truck driver Victor Robinson about 107 times that figure.
The unanimous decision last week from an Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals three-judge panel fully affirmed all the September 2023 decisions from both a jury trial in the U.S. District Court for Nebraska and later decisions handed down from the bench over post-trial motions.
EEOC awards have a cap
The affirmation includes a reduction in the original punitive damages awarded by the jury. That reduction came after the court ruled that EEOC awards are capped at $300,000.
The EEOC was the plaintiff in the case on behalf of Victor Robinson.The defendants along with Werner (NASDAQ: WERN) included Drivers Management LLC, which is Werner’s training subsidiary.
Werner made several points on appeal, all of which were rejected by the appellate court.
A recap of the case in the recent appellate court decision noted that Robinson had a “medical variance” from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). That waiver is needed for a deaf driver to obtain a CDL. It was obtained in 2015.
With the variance in hand, Robinson enrolled in Roadmaster, the driving school owned by Werner. His training involved not just a regular trainer but also an interpreter for the deaf, “who communicated with Robinson from the backseat of the vehicle throughout the process,” according to the court’s recap of the case’s history.
‘We can’t hire you’
In September 2016, Robinson completed the training and received his CDL. But soon after, according to the recap of the case by the appellate court, Werner Vice President of Safety and Compliance Jamie Hamm told him on a call, “I’m sorry, we can’t hire you because of your deafness.”
The call took place, according to the court, after Robinson had been told he had been preapproved for employment by recruiter Erin Marsh in an email. After calling Marsh – using a relay service for the phone call –the two talked about, according to the court, “‘the job, the orientation, providing interpreting services,’ and other general matters.”
The district court’s decision in January 2024 to award back pay to Robinson of about $35,000 lists several driving jobs Robinson had after not being hired at Werner, none of which lasted very long; only one, with Stan Koch Trucking, reached 12 months. Other jobs on his record included with J.B. Hunt (NASDAQ: JBHT) and U.S. Xpress, now part of Knight Swift (NYSE: KNX).
The roughly $372,000 award is a combination of the punitive damages, capped at $300,000, the backpay, plus interest and other costs.
“Werner is disappointed with the court’s decision,” a Werner spokesperson told FreightWaves in an email responding to a request for comment.
“Notably, in June of 2023, a jury in that same court found in Werner’s favor on nearly identical facts. The company operates with the mantra that nothing we do is worth getting hurt or hurting others, whether that be its professional drivers, customers or the motoring public at large.”
In a May 2024 series of decisions on post-trial motions in the case, the district court summed up the basis for the jury’s decision against Werner. “The jury determined that Robinson was qualified to perform the job to which he applied, he could have safely performed the essential functions of the job with a reasonable accommodation, and Werner’s refusal to hire Robinson was not based on business necessity,” District Court Judge John Gerrard wrote.
There were multiple issues raised by Werner in its appeal over events in the trial. They included the question of “causation” and whether Robinson’s dismissal was because of his deafness; whether Robinson’s overall driving record (which included several accidents) could be introduced to the jury; Werner objections to the admission of emails sent between Werner executives on the decision-making to deny Robinson employment; whether hiring a deaf driver would provide “undue hardship” for Werner; and whether the FMCSA waiver meant Werner could not deny Robinson employment on the basis of his deafness.
Ultimately, the appellate court did not side with Werner on any of the points made in its appeal.
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