Source: http://www.kmblegal.com/legal_topics/discrimination/disability-discrimination/
Timestamp: 2015-02-28 06:48:05
Document Index: 670708321

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 12102', '§ 12102', '§ 12111', '§ 12112', '§ 1630', '§ 12112', '§ 12112', '§ 1630', '§ 1981']

Disability Discrimination | Katz, Marshall & Banks
HomeLegal TopicsDiscriminationDisability Discrimination	Disability Discrimination
Whistleblower Law Blog	SEC Whistleblower Blog	The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), signed into law in 1990, provides broad-based protection to disabled employees and job applicants. It prohibits employers, employment agencies, and labor unions from discriminating against an employee because of that employee’s disability.
On September 25, 2008, President Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008(“ADA Amendments Act”) which went into effect on January 1, 2009. The Act significantly strengthened the protection of the ADA: it emphasizes that the definition of disability should be construed in favor of broad coverage of individuals to the maximum extent permitted by the terms of the ADA and generally shall not require the extensive analysis courts had previously required. The ADA Amendments Act rejects the holdings in several Supreme Court decisions and portions of the ADA regulations adopted by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The effect of these changes is to make it easier for an individual seeking protection under the ADA to establish that he or she has a disability within the meaning of the ADA.
Previous to the ADA Amendments Act, the courts EEOC had interpreted the phrase “substantially limits” to mean “significantly restricted”. The ADA Amendments Act overturned the relevant Supreme Court cases, declared that “significantly limited” is too strict a standard, and directed the EEOC to revise that portion of its regulations. In determining whether an individual’s impairment substantially limits a major life activity, the ADA Amendments Act also changed the law by stating that mitigating measures (such as the use of medications or assistive equipment) are not to be used in the determination, except for normal eyeglasses. Though the statute still lacks significant interpretation from the courts, this may mean, for example, that a diabetic worker whose otherwise-debilitating symptoms are controlled by insulin –- a mitigating measure -– would still be considered to have a disability.
The ADA Amendments Act also clarifies that an impairment that is episodic or in remission is a disability under the ADA if it limits a major life activity when the impairment is active. 42 U.S.C. § 12102(4)(d). For example, epilepsy is an incapacitating impairment when a seizure strikes, but otherwise may be hidden. Pursuant to the ADA Amendments Act, most forms of epilepsy would be considered a disability under the ADA. Finally, the ADA Amendments Act changed the definition of “regarded as” disabled, so that it no longer requires a showing that the employer perceived the individual to be substantially limited in a major life activity. Instead, the Act now provides that an applicant or employee is “regarded as” disabled if he or she is subject to an action prohibited by the ADA (such as termination or failure to hire) based on an impairment that is neither minor nor transitory. 42 U.S.C. § 12102(3).
Though the ADA Amendments Act has been in effect only for a few months, the attorneys at Katz, Marshall & Banks, LLP are confident that the ADA Amendments Act has significantly enhanced the protection of the ADA and are enthusiastic about its potential to help a much larger group of employees who have suffered discrimination due to their disabilities than the ADA previously covered.
The ADA prohibits employers from discriminating against any individual with a disability because of that individual’s disability, perceived disability, or past record of disability, with regard to job applications, hiring, promotion, or discharge of employees, employee compensation, job training, and all other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment. 42 U.S.C. § 12111(a).This includes both discrimination based on disparate treatment and disparate impact. Discrimination based on disparate treatment occurs when an employer treats a disabled employee or applicant differently than it treats non-disabled individuals because of the employee’s or applicant’s disability, such as firing, not hiring, or not promoting the employee because of his or her disability. The ADA also prohibits disparate treatment in the form of “limiting, segregating, or classifying a job applicant or employee in a way that adversely affects the opportunities or status of such applicant or employee because of [his or her] disability.” 42 U.S.C. § 12112(b)(1). This means an employer cannot make assumptions that pigeonhole a person with a disability, or regarded as having a disability: for example, an employer cannot reject an applicant in a wheelchair for a position that requires travel if the rejection is based on the mistaken assumption that the applicant will not wish to travel or will be unable to do so. EEOC regulations also require employment activities to take place in an integrated manner, so that employees with disabilities are not segregated into separate work areas. 29 C.F.R. § 1630.5 app.
The ADA also prohibits discrimination based on disparate impact. Disparate impact discrimination occurs when an employer uses employment tests, standards, or other selection criteria that intentionally or unintentionally exclude qualified individuals with a disability in a disproportionate manner. 42 U.S.C. § 12112(b)(6). These tests, standards, or other criteria may only be used if the employer shows it to be job-related for the position in question and consistent with a business necessity. For example, in one case, the court ruled that a rule prohibiting applicants with only one arm from becoming a security guard violated the ADA. Stillwell v. Kansas City Bd. of Police Comm’rs, 872 F. Supp. 682, 686-88 (W.D. Mo. 1995). In other cases, courts have found that the employer did show the standard was job related and consistent with a business necessity: for example, in Shannon v. N.Y. City Transit Auth., the court ruled that a transit authority rule requiring bus operators to be able to recognize and distinguish among the colors of traffic signals was valid. 189 F. Supp. 2d 55, 62, 64-65 (S.D.N.Y. 2002), aff’d, 332 F.3d 95 (2d Cir. 2003).
The ADA allows a qualified individual with a disability to request a “reasonable accommodation,” that is, “any change in the work environment or in the way things are customarily done that enables an individual with a disability to enjoy equal employment opportunities.” 42 U.S.C. § 12112(b)(5); 29 C.F.R. § 1630.2(o) app. For example, an accommodation request may seek a physical modification to an employee’s equipment or work space, such as modified furniture or lighting; purchase of software or other assistive device, such as Braille readers or lifting or carrying devices; flexibility in one’s work schedule or work location; medical leave during a period of incapacity from work; specialized training or application process; modifying or granting exceptions to neutral policies (such as those regarding leaves of absence, part-time work, or eating on the job); transfer to an open equivalent position; or other request which helps the individual perform their duties or enjoy equal benefits and privileges of employment as enjoyed by other employees.
An individual who has experienced a violation of the ADA may file a lawsuit in federal court. Before doing so, the individual must generally first file a charge with the EEOC as a prerequisite. Certain filing deadlines, generally ranging from 180 days to 300 days depending on the location and circumstances, apply to the filing of an EEOC charge. Other filing deadlines, filing procedures, and remedies may apply to disability discrimination, harassment, or retaliation claims brought under other statutes, such as the District of Columbia Human Rights Act or other state or local anti-discrimination laws.Remedies for private, state, and local government employees may include reimbursement for financial losses; compensatory (emotional pain and suffering) damages; punitive damages, if the employer acted with malice or reckless indifference to the employee’s federally protected rights; injunctive relief; and reimbursement for the employee’s attorneys’ fees and other legal costs. 42 U.S.C. § 1981a(a)(2). Certain limitations on compensatory and punitive damages may exist depending on the size and nature of the employer.
Many federal employees subjected to disability discrimination, harassment, or retaliation will file suit under the Rehabilitation Act, rather than the ADA, although the standards are generally the same as under the ADA. Federal employees must either make a complaint to an agency EEO counselor within 45 days of the alleged violation, or, if there is also a personnel action that would be subject to review by the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), they may appeal the employment decision directly to the MSPB within 30 days of receipt of a final agency decision. Federal employees employed by Congress or related agencies may have up to 180 days to make a complaint to the congressional Office of Compliance.Federal employees successful in their disability claim may also be eligible to receive financial damages, compensatory damages, injunctive relief, and reimbursement for attorneys’ fees and costs, although punitive damages are generally not available against the federal government.