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Recently the southern grocery chain, Publix, came under fire for withdrawing a job offer after the worker refused to cut off his dreadlocks. The worker cited his Rastafarian religion as the reason why he refused to cut his hair. This isn’t the first—and most certainly won’t be the last—time employers are met with nontraditional forms […]
Employers often struggle with the Americans Disabilities Act’s (ADA) requirement to provide leave as a reasonable accommodation for an employee with a disability. How much leave is required? Is it ever okay to terminate an employee who requests leave? In a recent decision, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals provides some solid answers to employers […]
Although disability-based harassment/hostile work environment claims have been recognized by the courts for a while, they aren’t very common. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit—which covers Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas—recently rejected an employee’s claim of disability-based harassment under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), finding her employer’s good-faith efforts to engage in […]
It’s no secret that discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims based on disability cost employers plenty—and it’s not just the dollars awarded in damages (although, admittedly, some jury awards are eye-popping). It’s the expense of litigation. It’s the time employers must spend defending claims. It’s the bad publicity for the company. It’s the damage to employee […]
Employees with qualifying disabilities may rely on a service and/or emotional support animal for a variety of reasons, and allowing them to do so at work may be considered a “reasonable accommodation” under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), provided the task performed by the animal is needed in the workplace, it’s directly related to […]
I know this sounds like a contradiction, but a Dallas court recently said it wasn’t. So, a Texas employer can be cleared of firing an employee because of his disability—despite the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)—but still be liable for failing to provide a reasonable accommodation. The Dallas office of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission […]
Determining what is a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is meant to be an interactive process between the employer and the employee. However, after exerting significant amounts of energy in the process, one Illinois employer got a reaction it had hoped to avoid—a lawsuit.
Recently, the 7th Circuit—which covers Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin—issued an opinion underscoring the importance of diligence, thoroughness, and consistent communication when you interact with employees seeking accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and reiterating its position that the interactive process is a shared responsibility between employers and employees.
Employees’ service animal accommodation requests tend to bring out the beast in everyone – employees requesting the accommodation, employers, and other employees. Anecdotally, service animal questions are on the rise, dogging HR professionals. The issue is here to stay.
A new ruling from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court should be a warning to employers in the state that refuse to tolerate medical marijuana use by employees with a disability.