Werner hit with $36 million jury award to deaf trucker

Werner, an Omaha-based trucking company, issued a statement Tuesday expressing disappointment with the jury’s decision.

The company said it is committed to safety and to an inclusive workforce, and that it is evaluating options for appeal. The company suggested the award was excessive.

“Importantly, punitive and compensatory damages are capped at $300,000,” it said.

Court records show the company had argued that Victor Robinson couldn’t safely perform one of the essential functions of the job.

Specifically, Werner contended that the trainer-observed, over-the-road component of its placement driver program is an essential function, and that there was no reasonable accommodation that would enable Robinson to safely complete it.

The jury rejected that argument.

Jurors found that Robinson, deaf since birth, deserved $75,000 in actual damages for his emotional pain, suffering, inconvenience, mental anguish and loss of enjoyment of life.

In addition, jurors awarded $36 million in punitive damages “for malice or reckless indifference to Mr. Robinson’s right not to be discriminated against on the basis of a disability.“

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, on Robinson’s behalf, alleged in court that Drivers Management, LLC, and its parent company Werner Enterprises, violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by refusing to hire Robinson because of his disability and his need for a reasonable accommodation.

According to the court records, he manages his disability by using American Sign Language and other assistive technology.

The commission filed the case in 2018 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska.

“Victor Robinson had the courage to step forward and say what happened to him was wrong,” said commission Chair Charlotte A. Burrows. “The jury agreed, and their substantial verdict sends a clear message to employers everywhere that our nation will not tolerate disability discrimination.”

The commission is charged with the administration, interpretation and enforcement of federal anti-discrimination law.

Robinson applied for work at Werner in 2016. Werner preapproved his application, but he was subsequently rejected, records show.

According to the records, in 2015 Robinson received — from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration — an exemption from the hearing regulations for the operation of a commercial motor vehicle.

In 2016, Robinson successfully completed commercial truck driving school at Roadmaster Drivers School in Indianapolis, Indiana. That year, he also received his commercial driver license.

According to the lawsuit, when Werner officials questioned him about whether his deafness would hamper his completing training, he told them he checks his mirrors frequently, his other senses compensate, and he could write and gesture with trainers.

The lawsuit alleged that Werner officials told him that because he could not hear, he would not be hired.

Subsequently, Robinson was hired by multiple commercial trucking companies and successfully worked as a commercial truck driver, his complaint said.

In their answer to the complaint, Drivers Management and Werner said that allowing Robinson to operate a commercial motor vehicle “creates a significant risk to the health and safety of others that cannot be eliminated by reasonable accommodations.”

In court filings, they said their actions were not discriminatory but justified because Robinson could not drive a truck “in a safe and efficient manner, and the essence of Werner’s business operation would therefore be undermined if Werner were required to employ” him.

In Tuesday’s statement, Werner said that in June 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,” it said. “Werner prides itself on fostering an inclusive workplace where our associates are encouraged to bring their full selves to work, including our valued associates who may have a disability.”