Six years, five supervisors, zero interpreters: EEOC takes on Walmart

By August 2023, the worker had turned to DARS for help again. The complaint alleges a DARS representative wrote to the store manager, repeating the accommodation requests and providing information on accessing video remote interpreting services. According to the filing, Walmart neither provided an accommodation nor worked with the employee to find a solution.

Then came the Samsung devices. The complaint alleges that in the fall of 2024, Walmart distributed thousands of Samsung electronic devices to employees across its retail stores, including the Fredericksburg location. The EEOC alleges these devices could run the very video interpreting services the worker had been requesting for years. But the device he received, the filing states, was not set up with accessibility features for deaf employees.

One more detail stands out. The complaint alleges that starting in 2025, Walmart contracted with a third party to provide free, on-demand interpreter services for deaf customers. The worker, the filing states, still had nothing for his daily meetings.

The complaint ticks through each year individually: no interpreter services in 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, or 2025. The EEOC alleges the store manager knew he could arrange interpreter services locally for under $500 without higher approval, and could get services or equipment above that amount with prior authorization.

Throughout all of this, the complaint notes, the worker has performed the core duties of his job satisfactorily. He continues to work at Walmart without interpreter services or any other accommodation for his disability.