News & Analysis as of

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Termination Corporate Counsel

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Deaf Ramp Agent’s Inability to Communicate With Others While Working Posed ‘Direct Threat’ to Employee Safety, Court Rules

SkyWest Airlines, Inc., was justified in discharging a deaf ramp agent because his inability to hear or effectively communicate posed a “direct threat” to the safety of himself and others, the U.S. District Court for the...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Employee's PTSD Diagnosis May Excuse Violation of Disciplinary Policies

The Americans with Disabilities Act does not require employers to ignore or excuse serious violations of their rules of conduct. For example, an employee who brings a weapon to work in violation of the employer’s policy...more

Venable LLP

Responding to Mental Health Accommodation Requests

Venable LLP on

Many employers have experienced an increase in employee requests for accommodations in the past few years. A federal jury’s recent award in Lisa Menninger v. PPD Development L.P. reminds employers that accommodation requests,...more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Brain Tumor: A Little Too Little, Too Late — Sixth Circuit Addresses Late Disclosure of Disability

Employers sometimes face difficult decisions after learning of an employee’s disability. What if you learn of a disability after ongoing repeated employment deficiencies or even after a disciplinary or discharge decision...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Appellate Court Addresses How Much Information Employee Must Submit to Support an Accommodation Request

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

One of the many difficult issues employers face under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is determining what information a disabled employee must provide to an employer to trigger the employer’s duty to accommodate a...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Above-Average Performance Reviews Counter Employer's Grounds for Termination

​​​​​​​“Grade inflation” is a well-known phenomenon in the academic sphere, where grade-point averages creep up over time despite the lack of performance-based reasons for the increase. Grade inflation can also be an issue...more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Now I Know My CBDs – Louisiana Court Favors Employee Terminated for Failing Marijuana Test

This country’s relationship with cannabis is a complicated one, and as is often the case in complicated matters, words matter. Marijuana and hemp are different strains of the Cannabis sativa L plant. So, “cannabis” is a...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

The $450,000 workplace birthday party

There was this disability discrimination issue . . . An employer who shall remain nameless had a tradition of throwing a little birthday party for each of its employees on their special day. The birthday of one employee...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

Everything Employers Always Wanted To Know About Vaccines . . . And Have Been Asking About For Months.

Just before the Memorial Day holiday, we had a “breaking news” bulletin about the revised guidance published Friday by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission about employers’ and employees’ rights when it came to...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Seventh Circuit Continues To Find That Lengthy Leaves Of Absence May Not Be Reasonable Accommodations Under The ADA

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

On December 30, 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit issued its opinion in McAllister v. Innovation Ventures, LLC, No. 20-1779 (7th Cir., Dec. 30 2020), and held that an employer did not violate the ADA...more

Sherman & Howard L.L.C.

Tenth Circuit Reverses Itself: Adverse Action Not Required To State ADA Failure-To-Accommodate Claim

Sherman & Howard L.L.C. on

Sitting en banc, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that an adverse employment action is not a required element of a failure-to-accommodate claim brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). In...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Regular, On-Site Attendance Is Essential Function Of Auditor Job, Sixth Circuit Rules

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

The Sixth Circuit previously explained in Hostettler v. College of Wooster, 895 F.3d 844 (6th Cir. 2018) that regular, in-person attendance is not a per se essential function of every job. Rather, employers must tie...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Can You Be “Regarded As” Disabled Based On A Potential Future Disability?

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

This certainly sounds futuristic. (Pun intended.) Still, in a case just decided by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, EEOC v. STME, LLC, the EEOC espoused precisely this position. The EEOC sued STME for disability...more

Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP

When Taking a Mexican Vacation During Your FMLA Leave is Not Grounds for Termination

A recent decision issued by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court offers up a good reminder that what employers may consider FMLA abuse may not in fact be FMLA abuse under the law. That's exactly the scenario that played...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Eighth Circuit Says ADA Does Not Require Waiving Attendance Policy

Job-protected leave continues to be the most common accommodation requested by employees under the Americans with Disabilities Act. For employers, the question remains at what point does the amount of work missed end the...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Appellate Courts Agree: Regular, Reliable Attendance Is Essential Function Of Most Jobs

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

Recent decisions from the Second, Fifth, and Eighth Circuit Courts of Appeals exemplify the growing consensus amongst courts that even employees with a disability are generally required to comply with company attendance...more

Amundsen Davis LLC

EEOC Consent Decree A Reminder That Attendance Policies Must Have An ADA Escape Valve

Amundsen Davis LLC on

In July the EEOC announced the terms of a consent decree settling claims of systemic disability discrimination against a global metal products manufacturer. Pursuant to the terms of the decree, the employer will pay $1...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Your Presence Is Required: Employee Unable To Travel To Job Site Was Not “Qualified” Within The Meaning Of The ADA

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

In recent years, particularly with technology making it easier for employees to work remotely, courts have struggled to determine whether onsite attendance is an essential job function under the Americans with Disabilities...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

You Can’t Always Get What You Want: Employers Don’t Have To Provide An Accommodation Requested By An Employee If There Are Other...

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

A recent Third Circuit case, Sessoms v. Trs. Of the Univ. of Pa., 2018 U.S. App. LEXIS 16611 (3rd Cir. June 20, 2018), serves as a reminder that while the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) requires employers to provide...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

FMLA And ADA Claims Put To Bed Where Employer Did Not Know Employee Had Sleep Apnea At The Time Her Employment Was Terminated.

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

Sometimes what you don’t know can help you. In Guzman v. Brown County, a 911 Dispatcher who was fired after being late repeatedly had her FMLA interference and retaliation claims sent to dreamland by the Seventh Circuit Court...more

Roetzel & Andress

Does The ADA Require An Employer To Extend A Leave Taken Under The FMLA?

Roetzel & Andress on

Are you an employer who must provide benefits to employees under the Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) because you have had 50 or more employees for at least 20 weeks during the past year? If so, do you sometimes get...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

The ADA Is Not a Medical Leave Entitlement, Seventh Circuit Declares

Today’s employers must run their businesses within the competitive environment in which they operate while affording employees an ever-increasing array of leaves. Yet, running a business without a full complement of employees...more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

From the Tinfoil Hat Files: Plaintiff Sleeping on the Job Claims Sensitivity to Electromagnetic Voltage

The 7th Circuit, in a short opinion issued April 6, zapped a plaintiff’s claim that he was terminated in violation of the ADA based on his condition of being overexposed to electromagnetic voltage at his job. Mr. Hirmiz, a...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Third Circuit Says “Last Call” for Employee Terminated After Caught Drinking While on FMLA “Bed Rest”

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

On January 31, 2017, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit joined the Seventh, Eighth and Tenth Circuits in holding that an employer’s honest belief that its employee was misusing FMLA leave is enough to...more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Bend Don’t Break: The EEOC Says Inflexible Attendance Policies Violate the ADA

In managing employee attendance, be careful about policies that suggest automatic termination after a certain number of absences as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) believes such policies violate the...more

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