Let me tell you about a teacher in South Dakota. In 2010, she received a letter communicating concerns about her performance. Subsequent evaluations of the teacher’s classes noted several deficiencies. So, the school placed the teacher on a performance improvement plan. It was right around this time that the…
Articles Posted in Disability
The golden rule of accommodating employees under the ADA
Last week, I talked about reasonable accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the importance of having an open-minded, respectful conversation with a disabled employee who requests an accommodation to perform the essential functions of the job. Ultimately, as I’ve discussed before, the employer (and not the employee) may…
Telling an employee to “focus on her health” is not disability discrimination
Rather, it’s just being — oh what’s that word — ‘human.’ Like in this case, in which a supervisor with breast cancer was disciplined — yes, folks, you can reprimand an employee with an ADA “disability” or FMLA “serious health condition” — for allegedly calling other employees names such…
Does the ADA mandate transfer preferences for disabled employees?
Last Friday, I had the pleasure of speaking at the National Employment Lawyers Association – New Jersey Annual Conference. I must admit that I was a bit leery. While it sounded legitimate enough — they asked me to speak on a panel addressing accommodation issues under the Americans with…
How ordering cheesesteaks can help employers with disability-accommodation requests
In Philadelphia, we’re known for certain things, such as cheesesteaks. Ordering the cheesesteak is a bit of an art form. For example, I could order a “Cheese steak, with Cheez Whiz and fried onions.” Or, I could simply say, “Cheese wit.” As most anyone around her knows that Cheez…
EEOC Commissioner Feldblum provides answers on obesity as an ADA disability
About two years ago, the EEOC sued a Texas company, alleging that the company engaged in disability discrimination, in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act, when it fired a 680-pound worker because he was morbidly obese. The EEOC alleged that the employee’s immense weight interfered with his ability to…
Under the ADA, even a 15-minute task may be an essential job function
Kolja Vraniskoska worked as an Environmental Services Technician for Franciscan Communities, Inc., a nursing home. Ms. Vran– (eh, let’s go with Ms. V) — had several responsibilities as an ES Tech, one of which was pushing and unloading a linen cart. Franciscan required that each ES Tech take a linen…
What employers should know about the ADA and fitness-for-duty exams
Imagine, if you will, that two years ago you hired Amanda Bynes to be your Social Media Manager. Things are going pretty smoothly, until your customers begin complaining that company’s Twitter feed has gone from informative and witty to curious and more-or-less bizarre. After reviewing the tweets for yourself, you…
FACT OR FICTION: Permanent light duty is an ADA reasonable accommodation
That’s right folks. It’s time for another edition of “Fact or Fiction” a/k/a “Quick Answers to Quick Questions” a/k/a QATQQ f/k/a “I don’t feel like writing a long blog post.” Today, I’m speaking at the EEOC EXCEL Conference in Denver, CO. It’s an incredible honor, given that this is the…
Breaking Bad: The Lost Episode (the one about Jesse’s ADA lawsuit)
A few years back, I sent in a Breaking Bad script to Vince Gilligan. At the time, I was concerned that the show was becoming too one-dimensional. High school teacher becomes meth kingpin. Yeah, I guess that could make for some good television — if you like taut, well-written, well-acted…