Jivaro Professional Headhunters, an Idaho-based recruiting services company, will pay $125,000 to settle a disability discrimination and retaliation suit filed by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency announced last week.

According to the EEOC, Jivaro Professional Headhunters did not allow an employee who worked as a senior technical recruiter at the company’s Hailey, Idaho, facility to return to work after she was hospitalized due a disability and terminated her. The suit further alleged that when she filed a charge with the EEOC about the discrimination, the company retaliated by providing negative and misleading job references to potential employers and filed a lawsuit against her in state court for reporting it to the EEOC.

In addition to providing the former employee $125,000 in monetary relief, the five-year consent decree settling the suit requires the defendants to hire an Americans with Disabilities Act consultant and implement policies that comply with the ADA and anti-retaliation laws. The defendant is also expected to train its managers, supervisors, HR staff and employees on sensitive issues emphasizing the employer’s obligations to accommodate applicants and employees with disabilities. EEOC will periodically monitor the company’s compliance with the law.

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, it is illegal to fire an employee because of disability or the need for an accommodation, and the law also prohibits retaliation against workers who report such discrimination.