Wells Fargo Settles Disability Discrimination Suit for 22.1 million

Charlotte, NCA former Wells Fargo Securities supervisor was awarded $22.1 million by a federal court jury in Charlotte last month. Christopher Billesdon’s disability and age discrimination lawsuit accused the San Francisco-based bank of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act and wrongful discharge under North Carolina state law.

The week-long trial ended a 16-month battle with plaintiff Billesdon and Wells Fargo. In March 2023, Billesdon filed a complaint claiming he was laid off because of “cost-cutting”, but he was let go because he requested to work from home as a disability accommodation when the banking giant started to mandate employees return to the office after the height of the COVID pandemic, and weeks before a mandatory return-to-office for everyone.

Billesdon was disabled in 1990 after an accident fractured his spine. It left him with a paralyzed colon and bladder, which requires frequent and quick access to a restroom. The Charlotte office did not have the right working conditions for Billesdon because of the bathroom being on the opposite side of the building where his groups were located. He claims that Wells Fargo used layoffs as an excuse to avoid dealing with his request for accommodation to cope with his disabilities.

Billesdon worked for Wells Fargo for 25 years pretty much without any issues. He made $2.6 million 2021 and was the highest-paid managing director on the asset-backed finance team at the time of his termination, reported Law360. According to his testimony, he spent a portion of his career running the bank's satellite office in California before moving back to Charlotte in 2020, a time when the entire workforce was working remotely due to the pandemic.

Then in August 2021, Billesdon requested to continue working from home unless he needed to travel as part of his job. He pointed out that this situation would let him better handle his disability. He received an email from his assigned accommodations manager on New Year’s Eve, 2021. His case was closed without a decision and two months later he was laid off.  

Accommodation Request

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires that employers provide reasonable accommodations for workers with disabilities and prohibits discrimination based on disability. And the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recommends that employers use an “interactive process,” which simply means that employers and employees with disabilities who request accommodations work together to come up with accommodations.

According to the Job Accommodation Network, the law doesn’t explicitly mandate an “interactive process” for reaching an accommodation decision, but it leans toward favoring such efforts. This process can include recognizing an accommodation request, gathering information, exploring options together, implementing an accommodation and monitoring the accommodation.

As well, enforcement authorities and courts tend to disfavor any party that causes a breakdown in the interactive process. An employment law attorney told HR Dive this ‘breakdown’ means that, if an employee abandons the process, an employer could be found to have met its ADA responsibilities; if an employer abandons the process, that can serve as evidence of discrimination.

“We are so grateful for the jury, who courageously sent a loud and clear message that willfully refusing to follow the law is unacceptable in the community,” said Billesdon’s lawyer in a statement to The Charlotte Observer. “We enforce our laws, even against offenders like Wells Fargo.” Wells Fargo said in a statement to the Observer: “We are disappointed by and disagree with this decision. Wells Fargo’s policies provide equal employment opportunities for all employees, regardless of disability or any other status protected by law, and we provided these opportunities in this situation.”

The case is Billesdon v. Wells Fargo Securities LLC, case number 3:23-cv-00160, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.