08/26/2010
The EEOC has filed suit against Princeton Healthcare System, claiming its leave policies violated the ADA. According to the EEOC complaint, Princeton Healthcare fires employees who aren’t eligible for leave under the FMLA if they cannot return to work in seven days.
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08/25/2010
A Morris County police officer is suing the county for lost wages stemming from a restriction against firing guns during her pregnancy.
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08/23/2010
You may not realize that employees can sue for retaliation if they’re punished for taking action to enforce the ADA against another organization. If the employee can show the action led to the punishment, he has a case.
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08/23/2010
Q. One of our school employees hurt her back while assisting students in the classroom. She went out on workers’ comp and has now reached maximum improvement, according to her doctor. But she can’t do her old job. Do we have to provide another job for her?
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08/20/2010
“Hi, this is Mike from XYZ Company. I’d like to ask you a few questions about a former employee whom you used to manage.” At some point in managers’ careers, they’ll receive such a phone call from an ex-employee’s prospective employer. Be careful: One simple mistake in your response could trigger an expensive lawsuit. Remember: Never disclose medical information about former employees.
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08/12/2010
A new 8th Circuit Court of Appeals case allows employers to use an employee’s FMLA certification as the basis for requesting a fitness-for-duty exam if the certification asserts that the employee can’t perform an essential function of her job. That’s especially true in high-pressure professions when an alleged FMLA serious health condition affects an employee’s ability to function while at work.
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08/06/2010
The ADA requires employers to provide a reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with a disability, unless doing so would cause an undue hardship. A recent 7th Circuit case sheds light on the extent of an employer’s obligation to accommodate an employee’s accommodation request.
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08/06/2010
Q. One of our security employees uses a hearing aid. He could not pass the unaided hearing requirements of his job. As a result, we let him go. His layoff occurred in 2007, when he first brought a claim for an alleged violation of the ADA. He claims that with the subsequent adoption of the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA), an employer is not allowed to consider mitigating measures in determining whether an employee has a disability. Can the ADAAA be retroactively applied so he is deemed to have a disability under the ADA?
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08/06/2010
Some employees think that if they have a learning disability, they are automatically disabled and entitled to an accommodation under the ADA. That’s not necessarily so. Such employees still have to prove that their specific learning disability substantially impairs a major life function, such as learning.
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08/06/2010
The ADA protects Americans from discrimination based on disability. But to be classified as disabled, employees and applicants have to show that they have more than transient or minor problems. Even a diagnosis is only a starting point since different conditions affect people in varied ways. Each individual is assessed based on his or her unique situation to see whether the condition underlying a diagnosis substantially impairs a major life function when compared to the average person.
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08/02/2010
Q. About once a month, one of our employees faints, is taken to the hospital by ambulance and is released to return to work—without restrictions. These recurring incidents are affecting our productivity, and we’re worried about the employee’s health. The employee has claimed the episodes are induced by workplace stress. What should we do?
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08/02/2010
Q. When a job applicant took a post-offer physical, he learned he has hepatitis C. The position he is seeking at our oil refinery would expose him to chemicals that could be harmful to his liver. If we refuse to hire him and he alleges disability discrimination, will we be able to utilize the “direct threat” defense?
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08/02/2010
It happens. Some working relationships between bosses and their direct reports are so toxic that employees suffer psychological problems. Sometimes the tension is so bad that employees believe they’re disabled and therefore entitled to transfer to another job under another supervisor. That isn’t the case.
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08/02/2010
You aren’t allowed to delve into an employee’s medical history or disabilities when the employee wants to keep the information private—unless you can show a clear job-related reason for doing so. To qualify as job-related, your inquiry must be narrowly tailored to assess whether the employee is capable of performing the essential functions of the job. Broad questions often run afoul of the law.
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07/27/2010
The Pennsylvania Human Rights Act is the commonwealth’s companion to federal employment laws such as the ADA and Title VII. The PHRA goes beyond most federal laws because it authorizes personal liability for those who “aid and abet” an act of discrimination. And as one recent case shows, aiding and abetting can include making a serious mistake about a reasonable accommodation request.
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