The EEOC’s challenge to “inflexible” leave policies continued this week, as the agency announced that it had sued Princeton HealthCare System for failing to reasonably accommodate employees who needed medical leave. According to the EEOC press release, Princeton HealthCare "fires employees" who are not qualified for FMLA leave and refuses to grant leave
Top 20 ADA Cases: Large Jury Verdicts and Perhaps Some Litigaphobia
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in ADA
As part of its celebration of the 20th anniversary of the ADA, the EEOC issued a report entitled "Twenty Years of ADA Enforcement, Twenty Significant Cases," sort of the top twenty ADA cases brought by the agency. Much can be gleaned from this ten page document and we may revisit it a few times.…
Alleviating Commuting Woes as a Reasonable Accommodation under the ADA
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in ADA
Does an employer’s duty to reasonably accommodate an employee’s disability include the duty to alleviate commuting challenges caused by the disability? Two courts of appeals recently held that it does unless to do so would be an undue hardship; both decisions reversed summary judgment for the employer on the ADA claims.
In both cases…
CELEBRATING THE ADA’S 20TH ANNIVERSARY WITH CASEY MARTIN: THE LAW AND THE LINKS
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in ADA
Sitting in the Rose Garden on July 26, 1990, President G.W.Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act and, no doubt intending the historical analogy, declared it "the emancipation proclamation" for those with disabilities. To commemorate the ADA’s 20th Anniversary, I am going to re-read my favorite ADA case, the Supreme Court’s 2001 decision in PGA Tour…
ADA, FMLA Collide at Wisbey and Carmona
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
The ADA and FMLA collided in two cases recently and, whenever that occurs, accident reconstruction, so to speak, is in order. In Wisbey v. City of Lincoln, NE, emergency dispatcher Wisbey was granted intermittent FMLA leave for the "next 6 months or longer" because of depression and anxiety. Her FMLA paperwork prompted the…
Electronic Book Readers Must Meet ADA Accessibility Requirements, says DOJ
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in ADA
Emerging technology clashes with ADA accessibility requirements, as the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of Education warn colleges and university about requiring classroom use of electronic readers. In an open letter to college and university presidents, the federal departments "express[ed] concern" that some electronic book readers "lack an accessible text-to-speech function," making…
Reassignment as a Reasonable Accommodation under the ADA: It Depends on Your Definition of “Vacant”
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in ADA
‘reasonable accommodation’ ‘vacant’ ‘reassignment’…
Continue Reading Reassignment as a Reasonable Accommodation under the ADA: It Depends on Your Definition of “Vacant”
Employee Rejects FMLA Leave Offer, Resigns, Claims Employer Denied Him Leave and Failed to Accommodate His Depression
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Sometimes it is unclear whether the employee is requesting leave that might be covered by the FMLA. This is not one of those situations. In Kobus v. The College of St. Scholastica, Inc., when the plaintiff told his supervisor in November 2006 that he would need to take time off for “stress and anxiety,&rdquo…
Leave as a Reasonable Accommodation Under the ADA
By Jackson Lewis P.C. on
Posted in ADA
Complying with the myriad of laws affecting medical leave continues to be a significant and growing challenge for employers. Making the decision whether and when to terminate an employee on medical leave is perhaps the most challenging, and carries significant risk. The EEOC’s recent challenges to “inflexible” leave policies–which resulted in a “record-setting” $6.2…
Time To Revisit ADA Medical Inquiry Rules At “Loggerheads” With OSHA Policy
By Francis P. Alvarez on
Posted in ADA, Work-Related Injuries
When a law, such as the ADA, restricts an employer’s rights to take reasonable, measured steps to promote workplace safety, it ought to be re-examined. Years ago, Justice Souter observed that preventing employers from considering "risk to self," an ADA rule many disability rights advocates had sought, would have put the ADA at "loggerheads" with federal OSHA policy requiring employers to ensure the…