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ADA

When Can You Fire a Disabled Worker?

09/01/2002

Q. We’ve had a disabled worker on staff for five years. He’s consistently absent or tardy and has trouble working with others and keeping up his job duties. We adjusted his hours, but his poor work forced us to reassign some of his duties and even hire another person to help carry the load. What can we do? —F.F., Texas

Rehiring ex-addict? Get proof of rehab

08/01/2002
Joel Hernandez had worked for Hughes Aircraft for 25 years when he tested positive for cocaine during a workplace drug test. Rather than be fired, he resigned. The company noted in …

Don’t wait for disabled to ask: Accommodation is two-way street

08/01/2002
Ray Birton, a cart gatherer and stockman at a Missouri Wal-Mart, occasionally forgot instructions and didn’t clock in and out correctly, resulting in paycheck errors. Birton’s mother gave his manager …

Tear down accommodation hurdles; don’t make worker formally apply

08/01/2002
When Howard Shapiro, a 15-year city employee, became disabled in a work accident, he couldn’t continue his paramedic job. So he made repeated requests for accommodations and identified several vacant positions …

Tread Carefully With Drug Test, Psychiatric Help

08/01/2002

Q. Can we suggest psychiatric help for an employee who we suspect may be having trouble with substance abuse? And can we require a random drug test? —H.J., Texas

Stick to facts with mental fitness tests

07/01/2002
Don Jackson, a county utility worker, got quite a shock one night when a psychologist called to confirm an appointment in two days. Jackson hadn’t made the appointment, his employer had. …

ADA: You can deny jobs that threaten workers’ own safety, health

07/01/2002
In a solid win for employers, the U.S. Supreme Court last month ruled that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) doesn’t entitle employees to jobs that might endanger their health, even …

Third-party retaliation will stand up in court

06/01/2002
Gregory Fogleman claimed that the age-old parable about a son being punished for the sins of his father played out in his workplace. As a result, Gregory’s employer could pay more …

No need to bend seniority rules to accommodate disabled employees

06/01/2002
Continuing a pattern of narrowing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that, in most cases, employers don’t have to override their seniority system to accommodate …

Don’t pry too deeply when seeking proof of sick leave

06/01/2002
Under her employer’s sick-leave policy, corrections officer Belinda Fountain had to provide a diagnosis of her medical condition every time she was absent. This “medical certification” had to be on …