Category Archives: Disability

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Landmark ADA Case Leaves More Questions Than Answers on Website Obligations

Businesses hoping for clarification on their obligations to ensure their websites comply with Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) will still have to wait, following a recent federal appellate court decision. That decision by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals (covering Florida, Georgia, and Alabama) vacates an earlier ruling by the same … Continue Reading

Does the ADA Protect Employees from Discrimination Based on Potential Future Disabilities?

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) does not protect employees from discrimination based on potential future disabilities, according to a recent ruling by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. However, employers in other parts of the country should be more cautious. For example, federal courts in Illinois reached the … Continue Reading

“When Do You Plan On Having A Baby?” And Other Questions Not To Ask

Employers interviewing women of child-bearing age may be tempted to ask about plans for having a baby, but doing so poses risks. While an employer might be concerned about staffing coverage, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act prohibits employers with 15 or more employees from discriminating against a woman based on her potential or capacity to become … Continue Reading

Job Descriptions Can Be A Shield or Sword

Job descriptions can be a shield or a sword for employers. In addition to setting clear job expectations, informing candidates of what the job entails, and providing a framework for evaluations, they are often used in litigation arising from workplace claims. Job descriptions can be critical in litigating actions under the Fair Labor Standard Act, … Continue Reading

New Year, New Wellness Program Rules

Employers with established wellness programs that collect health information and/or require a medical exam can no longer rely on the EEOC regulations to justify that incentives provided under their wellness programs are voluntary. On December 20, the EEOC published a final rule (83 Fed. Reg. 65296) vacating the rules that allowed employers to offer those … Continue Reading

If You Thought Website Accessibility Was Only for Your Customers—Think Again

Just how inclusive is your workplace? Do you use online applications? If visually impaired applicants cannot access your online application, chances are that your workplace fails to include these individuals. That means you could be both missing out on qualified applicants and making your business a target for claims. Over the years, in an effort … Continue Reading

One Visit and Vague Plans to Return Not Sufficient to Allow ADA Access Claim

Businesses might see a ray of hope in a recent federal appellate court decision that rejected the ability of a wheelchair-bound patron and “tester” to pursue her claim against a property owner and shop in Cocoa Beach, Florida. There is a veritable cottage industry of plaintiffs who bring claims against businesses, even those they have … Continue Reading

Website Accessibility Cases Proceed Despite Absence of Regulations

Recent trends indicate that ’tis always the season for web accessibility litigation, so with the new year, you should take a new look at your website. Businesses around the country, and especially in Florida, are discovering that their websites are within the crosshairs of visually impaired plaintiffs who, on contacting a business for assistance, may … Continue Reading

Disabled Access: A Chance to Fix Your Premises Before Being Sued?

New legislation seeks to level the playing field for businesses that have been targeted by “drive-by” claims alleging discrimination by customers with disabilities who may have never even gone to visit the place of public accommodation. Keep your fingers crossed. Businesses frequently complain about “drive-by” lawsuits. Some courts have lamented the “cottage industry” that seems … Continue Reading

Dogged by Dogs at Work: Barking Up the Wrong Tree?

Suppose you hire Kristin Chenoweth to be your new TV show host, and she shows up on the set with her dog Thunder, claiming she needs the dog for emotional support. Must you allow this distraction? Or suppose her third cousin shows up at your restaurant with Thunder’s twin bearing a “service animal tag,” yapping … Continue Reading

It’s Audit Season: Have You Audited Your Website’s Accessibility?

Audit season is in full swing. Businesses now are working with auditors on their tax and other audits to ensure compliance with various financial regulations. But there is one audit that many businesses have yet to undertake and have continued to miss over the last few years: the accessibility of their website. Many businesses continued … Continue Reading

Stress Claims Stressing Employers Out

Let’s face it: work can be stressful. So what’s an employer to do when an employee requests a stress-free or less stressful work environment as an accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act? As always, it depends. While the ADA generally requires employers to engage in the interactive process to determine whether they can accommodate … Continue Reading

Medical Marijuana and the Workplace

With the growing list of states legalizing marijuana, are workplace drug policies up in smoke? As the new year begins, Arkansas, Florida and North Dakota join the growing list of states that have legalized medical marijuana. Currently, 28 states* and Washington, D.C., have legalized marijuana use for certain medicinal purposes, and eight states** and the … Continue Reading

Catch-22 for Franchisors: The Joint Employment Dilemma

As government agencies steadily expand the concept of  joint employment, franchisors increasingly find themselves in a difficult position. Since August 2015, when the NLRB ruled in Browning-Ferris that entities with the ability to exercise direct or indirect control over workers can be joint employers (prior blog post here), franchisors have experienced increased scrutiny from both federal … Continue Reading

Employers Take Note, EEOC Issues Final Retaliation Guidance

Employers should review their policies concerning retaliation and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) interference in light of the new Enforcement Guidance on Retaliation published by the EEOC this week.  As retaliation is now the most frequently alleged basis of discrimination, employers should take note. … Continue Reading

Effective Management of Employee Medical Issues in 2015

Compliance with the Family & Medical Leave Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act continues to cause issues for even the most experienced workplace professionals. In recent years, both the FMLA and ADA have expanded coverage for employee medical issues. For example, employees who are approved for FMLA-covered intermittent leave must be permitted to use … Continue Reading

EEOC Updates Guidance on Accommodating Pregnant Workers

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has issued revised pregnancy discrimination guidance setting forth a framework for assessing how far employers must go in accommodating pregnant employees, following the Supreme Court’s ruling earlier this year in Young v. United Parcel Serv., Inc.  In that case, the Court held that, although a policy of providing light duty … Continue Reading

Second Circuit Confirms That Providing “Effective” Reasonable Accommodation Sufficient Under ADA and NYS Law

In Noll v. Int’l Bus. Machs. Corp., 13-cv-4096 (2d Cir May 21, 2015), the Second Circuit Court of Appeals addressed the extent to which, under the ADA and New York State law, an employee must be provided with the precise accommodation he or she requests and whether, if the employer offers a different type of … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Rules on, But Fails to Clarify, Pregnancy Discrimination Law

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act extends Title VII’s prohibition against sex discrimination to include pregnancy. It also says that employers must treat “women affected by pregnancy . . . the same for all employment-related purposes . . . as other persons not so affected but similar in their ability or inability to work.” But what does … Continue Reading
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