ADA

Accommodate employees with gender dysphoria

10/07/2024

Although gender dysphoria affects relatively few people, it can have a profound impact on those who do have the condition. It can be accompanied by anxiety, depression, eating disorders and substance abuse.

EEOC: ‘Fully healed’ return-to-work policy violates ADA

09/27/2024

Here’s a warning for employers that insist workers taking medical leave must be fully healed before returning to work. According to the EEOC, such a rule violates the ADA because it forecloses the possibility that disabled employees could perform the essential functions of their jobs with or without an accommodation.

Keep it Legal: Offer can’t be revoked for disability nondisclosure

09/27/2024

Most employers have a stipulation that specifies lying on an application as a dischargeable offense—a rule meant to prevent résumé fraud. But don’t apply it to someone who didn’t reveal a disability that you will have to reasonably accommodate.

Require supervisors to consult HR before removing reasonable accommodation

09/12/2024

Once an employer accepts and approves an employee’s request for a reasonable accommodation, it has essentially agreed that an accommodation was warranted. Think twice before removing that accommodation!

Twist: Disabled worker wants to work on-site, not from home

09/06/2024

Disabled employees are entitled to enjoy all “privileges of employment.” Excluding them from training, company events, team-building activities and other employment benefits may amount to disability discrimination. Thus, disability accommodations that deprive them of employment privileges may violate the ADA. Ordinarily, the employer gets to choose the accommodation it prefers, but there are limits, as this recent case shows.

CDC: More than 1 in 4 Americans have a disability

08/26/2024

A CDC statement said, “These findings underscore the fact that people with disabilities are a large part of every community and population. Many of us know, or are, someone with a disability, and disability inclusion is beneficial for all.”

Avoid the accommodations error that just cost Wells Fargo $22.1 million

08/26/2024

The ADA requires employers to engage in an interactive process with disabled employees to determine what accommodation, if any, will allow them to perform the essential functions of their jobs. It’s supposed to be a back-and-forth dialogue and it’s supposed to be fast. Delaying the interactive process or reaching an agreement and then slow-walking implementation is sure to spell legal trouble.

Refuse to reinstate disabled worker at your peril

08/22/2024

A federal appeals court has upheld a $1 million jury verdict that concluded an employer ignored objective medical information when it refused to reinstate a worker after a cardiac arrest.

Accommodate employees with eating disorders

08/14/2024

According to a study published by the Harvard School of Public Health, 9% of Americans will eventually have an eating disorder. The study calculated that eating disorders cost $48.6 billion in lost productivity each year due to missed work and compromised job performance.

Million-dollar mistake: Nonprofit employing disabled workers zapped for disability bias