That is, employees increasingly contend they have been denied work and advancement opportunities because of their employer s false perception that they are disabled. An employer perceives an employee as disabled when the employer mistakenly believes that the employee s actual, non-limiting impairment substantially limits one or more major life activities. For example, an employer may perceive that an employee s condition limits a major life activity when he or she believes that the employee is incapable of working in a broad class of jobs, not just the particular job that the employee is unable to perform. Proving a perceived disability case is challenging. An employee must prove that the employer perceives the employee as disabled, and that the perceived disability substantially limits a major life activity.
Employees thus bear the burden of presenting direct evidence of the employer s discrimination.
The evidence may be derived from a subjective statement combined with an objective motive, like limiting the employee s advancement within the company. Discriminatory commands can also be the key to a successful ADA perceived disability case. At a minimum, employers must be conscious of the effect of the disability on the employee because an employee with a medical condition is not necessarily disabled. A mistaken employer may expose him- or herself to liability under the ADA from an employee who would not otherwise be entitled to protection. The perceived disability cases present a new challenge for employers.