Yesterday, Greece came through with a long-awaited economic reform deal. Congratulations to them. What I want to know, however, is what the heck the Greek government was thinking when it recently expanded a list of state-recognized disability categories to include pedophiles, exhibitionists and kleptomaniacs. Bailout money back, please. At Res…
Yesterday, in Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC, the United States Supreme Court unanimously held that the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses of the First Amendment bar employment-discrimination lawsuits by ministers against their churches. More on this decision and some helpful reminders for private-sector employers after the jump……
To prove disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a plaintiff, at a minimum, must prove that: she is disabled; she is otherwise qualified to perform the job requirements, with or without reasonable accommodation; and she was discharged (or otherwise suffered an adverse employment action) solely on account…
As the year draws to a close, let’s take a look back at the most popular posts at The Employer Handbook in 2011, based on number of hits: 5. Social media and the workplace. School teacher Natalie Munroe made several appearances on the blog this year. Remember her? She…
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits covered employers from discriminating against job applicants and employees on the basis of a disability. What is a disability, you ask? A disability is “a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.” If your employee suffers from…
There is no federal law that specifically prohibits obesity discrimination. But is the Americans with Disabilities Act broad enough to cover discrimination against the obese? Well, if you read my blog regularly — Hi Dad! — you know that a hyper-obese Homer Simpson is not disabled, but this 680-pound Texas…
Back in June, I discussed here how the EEOC was discussing the use of leave from work as a reasonable accommodation under the ADA. The question I asked back then was how much leave is reasonable? When is enough, enough? Well, I can tell you now — and I suppose I…
In yesterday’s post, we looked at whether a morbidly-obese employee is protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Today, let’s apply yesterday’s discussion to a “real-world” example. Is Homer Simpson disabled? And is the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant legally obligated to offer him a reasonable accommodation? The answers after the…
Recently, 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. Is that right? Can being overweight be considered a “disability” under federal law? And, if…
Your business drug tests job applicants as a condition of employment. What would happen if a male applicant refused to take a urine test because he claimed that he had paruresis, otherwise known as “shy bladder syndrome” or “bashful bladder syndrome”? Would you have to accommodate the applicant with a different…