East Bay Janitor Who Was Fired After Back Injury Settles With School District

CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CA -- A custodian who was fired from an East Bay school district after a 2013 injury will receive a $290,000 settlement and his job back, according to the state Department of Fair Employment and Housing.

The custodian, Mark Miguel, returned to work at the Liberty Union High School District after an on-the-job back injury in 2013, but the district then informed him he was unqualified because he couldn't pass the physical examination.

According to the employment department, he had already been working for several months before his ability was questioned.

"The testing requirements in this case meant, in practical terms, that the employee had to be 100 percent healed from an injury before he would be permitted to take a test for a job he was already successfully
performing," Department of Fair Employment and Housing Director Kevin Kish said in a statement.

The state conducted an investigation and eventually sued the school district last year alleging the district had discriminated against him because of a disability, failing to make reasonable accommodations.

In addition to the settlement, the district clarified its policies on lifting restrictions, including that the screening test should only be for new applicants, according to the fair employment department.

The Liberty Union High School District includes schools in the northeastern Contra Costa County cities of Brentwood, Knightsen, Byron, Oakley and Discovery Bay.

Bay City News contributed to this report/Image via Shutterstock