Five years ago, the EEOC issued rules explaining which medical exams you could require and what health questions you could ask job applicants without running afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Now, newly released guidance from the EEOC helps clear up some of the uncertainty employers face when these types of issues come up regarding workers after they are hired.
Part 1 of this two-part series looks at the circumstances under which you can ask employees disability-related questions and require medical exams.
In Part 2, we’ll review some other topics the EEOC addressed, ranging from when you can send an employee to a company doctor to the documentation you can require when an employee seeks a disability accommodation.
What Is A Disability-Related Question?
The guidelines define disability-related inquiries as questions likely to elicit information about a disability. They may include asking employees—or their co-workers or family members—whether they’ve had a disability, filed a workers’ compensation claim, taken prescription medication or had medical impairments in the past.
Questions about a person’s general well-being are not considered disability-related. So, you are free to ask an employee who looks tired whether they feel OK. You can also inquire about nondisability-related conditions such as how an employee broke a bone, whether a worker has been drinking or how a pregnant employee is doing.
400+ pages of state-specific, easy-read reference materials at your fingertips—fully updated! Check out the Guide to Employment Law for California Employers and get up to speed on everything you need to know.
What Is And Isn’t A Medical Exam
The guidelines define medical examinations as procedures that seek information about an individual’s health or physical or mental impairments. Examples include vision tests, blood tests, blood pressure screening and range-of-motion tests.
Procedures that aren’t medical exams include screening for current illegal drug use; psychological evaluations for personality traits such as honesty; and tests of physical fitness, agility, or the ability to read labels or distinguish objects.
When Questions And Exams Are OK
According to the EEOC, you can ask employees disability-related questions and/or require medical exams if they are “job-related and consistent with business necessity.” In most cases, an employer’s need to make such inquiries will be triggered by objective evidence of performance problems or indications that a particular employee poses a direct safety threat.
The EEOC provides some examples of these types of circumstances, such as a crane operator who complains to you about feeling light-headed, in which case you could require a checkup. You also could insist on an exam if someone else tells you about the employee’s problem, so long as the information is reliable enough for you to reasonably believe the worker’s ability to operate the crane may be impaired.
Another example is an auditor who blames a recent drop-off in their work on prescription medication they are taking. In that situation, you would have the right to request more information about the medicine.
You can also require that employees whose jobs place the public at risk take periodic medical exams and report prescription medication use that may affect their job performance. And you can mandate that an employee who has been away from work for alcohol rehabilitation submit to periodic alcohol testing for a reasonable period of time.
Dealing With Uncooperative Employees
If you have good reason to make medical inquiries or require medical tests, you can discipline an employee who refuses to cooperate. But the discipline must focus on the worker’s actual performance problems. For instance, a person who constantly squints at the computer screen but refuses to take an eye exam can be disciplined for a decline in productivity, not for refusing a checkup.
Employees Who Seek A New Position
A current worker who applies for a new job is considered an applicant for ADA purposes. So they may not be asked disability-related questions or required to undergo medical tests until they have been offered the new position. This rule does not apply, however, when the person is entitled to the new job because of seniority or performance.