McDonald's Loses in HIV Bias Suit

CLEVELAND -- A jury has confirmed a prior verdict against McDonald's for forcing a man out of the company after learning his HIV/AIDS status. A Cuyahoga County Common Pleas jury unanimously ruled in favor of Russell Rich, 41, awarding him $490,000.

Mr. Rich started working the cash register at McDonald's when he was only 13 years old, and at 34 had become a manager of a company-owned restaurant. He was pressured to resign when McDonald's learned about his HIV status.

Without the support of the company's health insurance, Mr. Rich nearly died. In 1998 he sued the company, but was afraid he would not survive to see the lawsuit through.

In 2001, he was awarded $5 million in damages. McDonald's appealed, and the ruling was overturned, based on faulty instructions to the jury from the judge.

"With me, it's always been the principle, not really the money, but I was disappointed in the amount because my medications cost $145,000 per year," Rich said in a statement. Rich plans to appeal the verdict.

A spokesman for McDonald's said the company also may appeal. "We are clearly disappointed with the jury's verdict in this case," said spokesman Bill Whitman. "As we have stated from the beginning of this case, Mr. Rich's allegations are baseless and without merit."