Articles and Blogs

Sometimes the important things that an employee may be required to do in a job almost never happen.  Take for example a worker at a juvenile detention center who might one day have to physically restrain a violent youth who might be causing trouble at the facility.  It doesn’t happen often, but it certainly could.  Does... READ MORE

Is Shared Lifting a “Reasonable” Accommodation? Employees who suffer from a bad back and have lifting restrictions always present a challenge to employers who attempt to accommodate those restrictions.  It’s discrimination under the ADA if the employer fails to make a reasonable accommodation to the known physical or mental limitations of an otherwise qualified individual with a... READ MORE

The answer to that question now is YES, so long as that person is “qualified” for the job and the transfer isn’t an “undue hardship.” A significant change of course on competition for vacant positions as an ADA accommodation Reversing twelve years of decisions that allowed an employer to pick the best applicant for a... READ MORE

Pregnant Employee with 10 Pound Lifting Restriction – What to Do? Is it unlawful discrimination for an employer to place a pregnant part-time merchandise stocker with a 10-pound lifting restriction on an involuntary unpaid leave? In this recent case decided by the Seventh Circuit, the Court said “No“. . . there was no unlawful... READ MORE

The ADA requires employers to attempt to reasonably accommodate qualified individuals with a disability.  But what about a Certified Mammography Technician who suffered 14 epileptic seizures on the job in a two year period? In this case a federal court held that this hospital employee was not qualified and also presented a direct threat... READ MORE

Under the ADA an employer is obligated to find a “reasonable accommodation,” if possible, for a qualified individual with a disability, which would allow that individual to perform the essential functions of his or her job or to otherwise remain employed by the employer.  Such an accommodation can take various forms, including reassignment of... READ MORE

Dealing with an employee’s poor attendance is one of the bigger headaches for management, especially in health care where a crucial employee’s unplanned absence could mean the difference between life and death for a patient.  But the FMLA and the ADA add layers of complexity and uncertainty for employers in striking a balance between... READ MORE

As we approach the one-year anniversary of the ADAAA regulations, we have caught only a glimpse of the true effect of these legal changes. We have seen a string of multi-million dollar settlements from the EEOC involving class disability claims, culminating in Verizon’s payout of $20 million for an allegedly “illegal” and “inflexible” no-fault... READ MORE