Showing posts with label ADA. Show all posts

How long must an ADA leave be?

Employers are having a difficult time complying with the new Americans with Disability Act leave requirements.  Employers who cap leave time at a maximum number of days, or cap it at 12 weeks mistakenly believing the FMLA maximum is all ADA requires' have found out the EEOC and the Courts see the requirements differently. An individual assessment is required for each leave request. While it is conceivable an across the board capped among of time may establish an employer's hardship, its not an easy burden to meet and individual assessment, even in that context is required. Some cases of note are discussed in this on line post.

GINA and ADA record keeping

Title I of the ADA and Title II of GINA limit employer access to medical information. Regardless of whether an employer or an occupational health provider maintains information in paper or electronic files, it must ensure that personal health information about applicants or employees cannot be accessed, except under the circumstances permitted by the statutes. The EEOC has issued an informal opinion letter providing some guidance.

Dwarf denied stool accommodation

In a suit filed against Starbucks by the EEOC, the allegations are after hiring a dwarf, Starbucks refused to provide her a stool or stepladder so that she could fulfill her customer service duties. The EEOC claims the failure to provide an accommodation violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Attendance not essential

Attendance, FMLA and the ADA. The combination can be a toxic brew for employers. When does intermittent absence render an employee unqualified? The Fifth Circuit's opinion in Carmona v. Southwest Airlines Company provides an interesting answer. More after the jump.
The plaintiff, was granted intermittent FMLA leave for 7 years. He missed several days a month due to a disability. His FMLA leave was not renewed because he had not worked enough hours to qualify. The company attendance policy was based on a point system which did not count FMLA leave. The employee "pointed out" and was terminated because he could not fulfill the attendance requirements. The plaintiff won a jury verdict on his ADA claim which was vacated by the trial court. The Fifth Circuit (Garwood, Owens, Southwick) reverses. The opinion makes it clear that an employer's FMLA accommodation may carry over to ADA issues and affect whether attendance is an essential function of every job, which had appeared to be the law in this circuit.  Money quote:
Therefore, while a regular attendance schedule was not an essential requirement of Carmona’s position, Southwest could have argued that attendance on scheduled days was required. But under the facts of this case, Southwest could not have prevailed on this argument, either, because there was sufficient evidence that its own actions reflected that attendance on scheduled days was not required. Southwest approved Carmona’s intermittent FMLA leave,  which permitted [fn 3 Albeit through a third-party administrator.] Carmona to miss over half of each working month without notice. Southwest’s attendance policy then prevented these absences from being counted against him.  If Southwest had denied Carmona’s request for intermittent FMLA leave, it might have had a strong argument that as a matter of law Carmona was not qualified to work as a flight attendant. However, under the facts of this case, it could reasonably be found that Southwest essentially conceded that Carmona was qualified by granting him intermittent FMLA leave and then tolerating his FMLA-approved absences for seven years.  Furthermore, Southwest did not assert at trial that it had terminated Carmona because his disability prevented him from showing up to work consistently on his scheduled days.  And it does not do so now.  Instead, Southwest argues that it terminated him because it believed that he had violated its attendance policy.  

Final ADA regulations

Then EEOC has issued final regulations implementing the ADA Amendments Act.

EEOC settles ADA claim in New Orleans

Retailer Saks has agreed to settle, for $170,000, an ADA claim filed by the EEOC,  arising in the New Orleans store. Details here.

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