Senior Judge Rosemary Collyer, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM)

A Washington federal judge has dismissed an U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit accusing a Walmart store of failing to accommodate two deaf employees, concluding the complaint fell short of stating a proper disability discrimination claim.

The lawsuit filed in June alleged a Walmart store in Washington did not provide the two former employees access to translators and comprehensive note-taking in meetings. The two employees communicate primarily through sign language.

Senior Judge Rosemary Collyer of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia said in her ruling Thursday the EEOC failed to explain what job duties the workers performed and why accommodations were necessary to perform those duties.

“A well-pled complaint requires more; namely, the facts alleged must be enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative level,” Collyer wrote. ”Here, to the contrary, EEOC presents an amalgam of bare assertions that do not provide factual support for a claim that is plausible on its face. It is not the province of the Court to speculate and strain to have a complaint meet pleading standards, especially where Plaintiff is a sophisticated federal agency.”

Collyer dismissed the EEOC's complaint without prejudice. The EEOC did not immediately comment on whether the agency intends to file a new complaint. A lawyer for Walmart, represented by Littler Mendelson, was not immediately reached for comment. A Walmart spokesman did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act must show that the employee had a disability, the employer had notice of the disability and that the employee could perform essential functions with, or without, reasonable accommodations.

The EEOC, according to Collyer, showed that the workers had disabilities and that Walmart was aware, but added, “It is the third element of the reasonable accommodation claim that EEOC fumbles.”

The EEOC's lawsuit claimed one of the plaintiffs was not given accommodations to, among other things, participate in meetings, including daily meetings for department managers. The complaint alleged the employee requested access to sign language interpreting or comprehensive note-taking for certain meetings.

The other former employee was not provided access to sign language or detailed written notes for meetings and trainings, including new employee orientation, daily group meetings and one-on-one meetings related to personnel matters, according to the lawsuit.

Disability discrimination was one of the top charges filed by the EEOC against businesses during the most recent fiscal year. In September, the EEOC sued a Walmart store in Wisconsin for alleged discrimination against an employee who is deaf and visually impaired. Walmart, represented by MWH Law Group, has denied the charges. That case is ongoing.

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