A West Virginia man has filed a federal lawsuit accusing CSX Transportation of disability discrimination.
Steven Brumit filed his complaint in federal court in Florida against CSX Transportation Inc. Brumit lives in Hinton, W.Va.
According to the complaint, Brumit began working for CSX in 1996 and most recently was an engineer. In January 2022, he says he contrcted long COVID and took medical leave for six months. His primary symptom is severe fatigue which exacerbates his other medical conditions including diverticulosis, according to the complaint.
When he was able to return to work in June 2022, Brumit had a single restriction recommended by his doctor, who said Brumit could work only local runs so he could return home and sleep in his own bed after work. Despite having seniority to hold jobs that perform only local runs and his restriction causing no inconvenience to CSX operations, the company refused to accommodate him. This refusal led to Brumit's effective termination.
Brumit alleges CSX effectively terminated him instead of accommodating his disability, which he asserts is easy to accommodate. The case questions whether CSX's refusal to accommodate Brumit's disability and/or its effective termination of him violate the Americans with Disabilities Act.
He seeks an injunction to have CSX stop such practices that violate the ADA. He also seeks compensatory, pre-judgment interests, court costs, attorney fees and other relief.
In its answer, CSX denies the allegations.
Brumit is being represented by Nicholas D. Thompson of Casey Jones Law in Minneapolis. CSX is being represented by Thomas R. Brice Jr. and Cameron G. Kynes of McGuire Woods in Jacksonville.
U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida case number 3:23-cv-1358