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ADA

Never pre-judge obviously disabled applicants

08/17/2017
Pre-judging an applicant with an obvious disability can lead to big legal trouble. Just mentioning such a disability—think needing crutches to walk, for example—can become the basis for a discrimination lawsuit if the applicant isn’t hired.

UPS settles EEOC disability discrimination suit for $2 million

08/15/2017
International shipping giant UPS has agreed to pay $2 million to nearly 90 current and former employees to settle a nationwide EEOC disability discrimination lawsuit filed in 2009.

EEOC sues M&T Bank, alleging disability bias

08/03/2017
When Buffalo-based M&T Bank purchased Hudson City Savings Bank, it got a little more than it bargained for. It inherited the fallout from HCSB’s “100%-healed” policy, which requires employees to take sick leave unless they could work with no medical restrictions whatsoever.

ADA hostile environment claim moves forward

08/03/2017
To date, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals has not ruled definitively that the ADA provides an avenue for a claim of a hostile work environment based on disability. That may soon change. A lower court has approved such a case for trial.

When is telecommuting considered a reasonable ADA accommodation?

08/03/2017
Q. Our organization rarely if ever lets employees work from home. An employee in our marketing department is struggling with a disability and has asked to work from home as an accommodation. Would that be a reasonable accommodation?

How should staff conducting employment interviews accommodate deaf applicants?

08/03/2017
Q. The recruiting manager of our company is interviewing a deaf applicant for an open position. What should she keep in mind during the interview?

Late despite accommodation? OK to discipline

08/03/2017
What can you do about a disabled employee who has requested a late starting time as a reasonable accommodation—and still can’t manage to get to work on time? You can and should discipline her just as you would any other employee with attendance problems.

Open-ended leave isn’t reasonable ADA accommodation, also won’t work on age bias

08/02/2017
A request for indefinite leave can sink more than an ADA claim. A federal court has dismissed an age discrimination case because the employee could not say when he would be able to work again.

ADA: No requirement to create brand-new job

08/02/2017
Disabled employees may be entitled to transfer to an existing and open position, but they have no right under the ADA or the Rehabilitation Act to demand a job be created specifically as an accommodation.

Employer–not disabled employee–gets to choose the reasonable accommodation

08/02/2017
When an employer offers a legitimately reasonable accommodations for a disabled employee, it has fulfilled its obligation under the law. It doesn’t matter if the employee wanted some other accommodation or wasn’t happy with the level of employer/employee interaction used to arrive at the accommodation.