AEGiS-AP: Settlement In Aids Dispute Called 'victory' By Supporters

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1986. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Settlement In Aids Dispute Called 'victory' By Supporters

Associated Press - December 10, 1986

MIAMI, Dec. 10 - A $190,000 settlement that reinstated an employee who has AIDS and paid his medical bills is "a tremendous victory" for others victims of the disease, civil rights advocates say.

The worker, Todd Shuttleworth, a 33-year-old budget policy analyst with Broward County, was reinstated Monday.

The settlement covers Mr. Shuttleworth's back pay, medical bills and legal fees, although the county made no admission that the dismissal constituted discrimination.

"It's a tremendous victory in our leading case," said Nan D. Hunter, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union who is a coordinator of AIDS programs in Miami.

Mr. Shuttleworth was diagnosed with AIDS in June 1984, and the county dismissed him the next September out of fear that he might transmit the disease to co-workers.

The disease is transmitted by virus primarily through the exchange of bodily fluids, such as semen or blood.

Mr. Shuttleworth is currently working for the medical examiner, coordinating educational programs on AIDS.

Referring to the settlement, Ms. Hunter said in a telephone interview, "Legally, the most significant aspect of it is the county agreed that for all future AIDS-related cases, it would be bound by the Federal civil rights laws."

An 'Enormous' Impact

"As a practical matter, the most significant aspect of it is this defendant had to shell out almost $200,000 in damages," she said. "That's going to have an enormous educational impact on employers in the future."

Urvashi Viad, a lawyer who is a spokesman for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force in San Francisco, said the settlement "sends a strong message to employers across the country that people with AIDS cannot be discriminated against, that they must be treated as if they had any other handicap."

Several states have adopted policies prohibiting discrimination against people with AIDS. But the Justice Department said in June that Federal law did not prohibit refusing to hire people with AIDS if employers cited fear of contagion.

However, the Justice Department's opinion has no binding effect, Ms. Hunter said.

"This is a situation that's going to recur because more and more people are going to be diagnosed with AIDS, and more employers are going to have to develop policies and be clear with people," Ms. Viad said. "One of the things that I hope will happen after the settlement is employers will take the time to develop good policies, ones that will hold up legally."

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