Tag: disabilities

Balancing Work and Cancer: How HR and Managers Can Help

By Rebecca V. Nellis, MPP, Chief Mission Officer A cancer diagnosis often catches people by surprise. When the person with cancer is one of your employees, knowing how to react is not intuitive. The truth is, when an employee discloses their diagnosis to you, they are looking for direction. Your next steps will be remembered […]

Experts Highlight Employment Law Issues for Associations

Associations need to have a special take on legal issues, because they are nonprofit, small employers and they may have to comply with laws in the District of Columbia, which has been a bellwether in promulgating liberal employment laws, causing some legal experts to call it the “California of the East.” To explain employment issues […]

EEOC Wants Feds to Provide Personal Assistants to Disabled

While the provision of a personal assistant generally has not been considered a “reasonable” accommodation required by disability nondiscrimination laws, federal employers may soon have to make such accommodations for workers with disabilities. In a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking scheduled to be published in the Federal Register Feb. 24, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission […]

Employer Pays $50K for Refusing to Hire Worker in Methadone Treatment Program

A temporary staffing agency based in Baltimore has agreed to pay $50,000 to resolve claims that it refused to hire an applicant because of her participation in a methadone treatment program. Randstad, US, LP entered into the agreement to settle a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit alleging that its actions violated the Americans with […]

7th Circuit Lacks Conviction for Police Officer’s ADA Claim

By Kelly Smith-Haley, JD Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employers may be required to offer reasonable accommodations to qualified employees. A recent opinion from the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals—which covers Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin—reminds employers that when it comes to providing a reasonable accommodation, it doesn’t have to result in highway […]

7th Circuit Won’t Rehear United Airlines ADA Reassignment Case

An appeals court won’t rehear a case in which it ruled that United Airlines was not required to reassign a worker with a disability because that accommodation would have violated its collective bargaining agreement’s seniority policy. The court also held that the lower court properly dismissed the case because the employee failed to identify any […]

For Long-Term Medical Leaves, Communication Is Key

You must be careful when you craft and enforce policies addressing prolonged absences. Even when an employee has exhausted her statutorily protected leave, you should consider offering additional leave as a reasonable accommodation unless you can demonstrate that you would suffer an undue hardship because of the continuing absence.

Employee Allergies and the ADA—What Should HR Do?

In our “What Should HR Do?” interactive video series, we present real-life scenarios similar to those HR professionals face in the workplace every day. For each scenario, you, the viewer, get to select what you believe is the best response from a few possible options. Then, we’ll let you know whether you made the best […]