Opinion ID: 1928737
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Cole's Claim Involving Illegal Preemployment Inquiries.

Text: Cole's second claim under the ADA is that Animal House and Staff Temps engaged in illegal preemployment inquiries during their private meeting with Cole. Specifically, Cole claims that Waite asked her if she had any physical limitations or health problems and if she had ever received workers' compensation. Animal House and Staff Temps denied the allegations. The district court held there were no violations.
The ADA provides that a covered entity shall not ... make inquiries of a job applicant as to whether such applicant is an individual with a disability or as to the nature or severity of such disability. 42 U.S.C. § 12112(d)(2)(A); see also Iowa Admin.Code r. 161-8.31(2). However, the ADA does provide an acceptable inquiry. A covered entity may make preemployment inquiries into the ability of an applicant to perform job-related functions. 42 U.S.C. § 12112(d)(2)(B). Based on the statute, the ADA strictly forbids an employer from asking a job applicant about disabilities. The EEOC has offered guidance in explaining these provisions: At the pre-offer stage, an employer cannot ask questions that are likely to elicit information about a disability. This includes directly asking whether an applicant has a particular disability. It also means that an employer cannot ask questions that are closely related to disability.... [However,]... an employer may ask whether applicants can perform any or all job functions, including whether applicants can perform job functions with or without reasonable accommodation. EEOC Compliance Manual § 902, at 5373 (1996). In other words, an inquiry into a job-related function must be narrowly tailored, and it should not be phrased in terms of disability. See 45A Am.Jur.2d Job Discrimination § 564, at 528. As an example, an employer may state its attendance requirements and ask whether an applicant can meet them, but it may not, at the pre-offer stage, ask how many days an applicant was sick. EEOC Compliance Manual § 902, at 5374. Also, an employer may not ask applicants about job-related injuries or workers' compensation history. These questions relate directly to the severity of an applicant's impairments and are likely to elicit information about disabilities. Id. at 5375.
We believe the district court's findings of fact are supported by substantial evidence. Even though the physical limitations were discussed, the district court decided, based on the testimony at trial, that no prohibited inquiries were made by Shaver or Waite. Viewed in the light most favorable to upholding the judgment, we believe the evidence is adequate to support the district court's conclusions. Cole also claims that the Staff Temps job application illegally inquired into her physical limitations. Specifically, Cole is referring to a section on the application which asks an applicant to list any job performance limitations. Under the ADA, an employer may make preemployment inquiries about the ability of a job applicant to perform job-related functions. 42 U.S.C. § 12112(d)(2)(B). We have considered Cole's claims, and we hold that the district court's findings are supported by substantial evidence. We affirm. AFFIRMED.