We are a cold storage facility and recently received a doctor note for one of our employees indicating that the employee must not work in the freezer area. Our facility is divided into different temperature areas but is always at a cold temperature. What do I do moving forward with this employee? Her job requires her to work in the freezer. I have temporarily restricted her from going into this area. — Maria, administrative supervisor in El Monte
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Our CELA editors have some useful strategies for managing this issue.
The federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) both protect qualified individuals with a disability. A “qualified individual” is someone who can perform the essential functions of his or her job with or without a reasonable accommodation. The ADA defines a “disability” as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; FEHA requires only that the physical or mental impairment limits–or makes more difficult–a major life activity. The ADA covers employers with 15 or more employees, while FEHA covers private employers with 5 or more employees and all public employers.
Rather than getting into the difficult task of determining whether the employee’s condition is considered a “disability” under the ADA and/or FEHA, you’re better off looking into whether there is some reasonable accommodation you can offer that will allow the employee to continue to perform the essential functions of her job. The employee has notified you that she has a medical condition that requires her not to work in the cold, but her job involves working in a freezer area. This is a particularly difficult problem to solve because the entire facility is cold. A reasonable accommodation might include a restructuring of her job, if there is some way she can perform its essential functions in a sufficiently warm area. If the medical condition will improve so that the restriction on working in a cold environment is temporary, a leave of absence might also be a reasonable accommodation.
It sounds as if you have little information on the employee’s condition and/or the length of time when she will be restricted in her work. Therefore, you should probably request a medical certification under the ADA. The employee’s treating physician will complete the certification and provide more information on the job restrictions. It is usually a good idea to provide the doctor a copy of the job description and/or description of the employee’s job duties and work environment so he or she can answer questions about the employee’s ability to perform the essential job functions and the type of accommodation that might be necessary.
You should also review your policies and past practices related to requests for this type of accommodation in the workplace. You need to be careful not to treat this employee differently than you have treated others with similar concerns in the past.
Once the medical certification is completed, you have an obligation to engage in what is referred to as the interactive process with the employee to determine if a reasonable accommodation can be made that would permit the employee to perform the essential job functions. This process should be well documented. If you do not believe you can make a reasonable accommodation that would allow the employee to continue to perform the essential job functions, it would be best to seek the advice of an experienced California employment attorney. This is especially important if termination is considered.