How to Conduct Criminal Background Checks the Right Way
Federal Agency Charges Property Management Companies With Revoking Job Offer From Woman With Breast Cancer - BOSTON – Atlantic Properties Management Corporation and its affiliate, Diversified Funding, Inc., property...more
A U.S. District Court recently dismissed the lawsuit of a former employee who claimed disability discrimination after he was terminated for testing positive for marijuana in a pre-employment drug test. Espindola v. Wismettac...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In Flaherty v. Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., ___ F.3d ___, No. 18-1759, 2019 WL 7046367, at *1 (1st Cir. Dec. 23, 2019), the First Circuit struck a terminated nuclear plant security officer’s...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Stepping into a new year always gives one a chance to reflect on the lessons and trends of the prior year. In that spirit, we are pleased to present our annual selections for the five most intriguing...more
The Washington State Supreme Court recently held obesity qualifies as an impairment under the Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD). The decision runs counter to other court decisions across the country finding obesity...more
The Washington Supreme Court held for the first time yesterday that obesity is a protected class under state anti-discrimination law (Taylor v. Burlington Northern Railroad Holdings, Inc.). This decision runs counter to...more
Trucking Company Used Post-Offer Screen That Screened Out Applicants On the Basis of Disability, Federal Agency Charged - DENVER - National trucking company JBS Carriers, Inc. will pay $250,000 and furnish other...more
This month’s key employment law cases address pre-employment physicals, appeals from California Labor Commissioner awards, and background checks. EEOC v. BNSF Ry. Co., 902 F.3d 916 (9th Cir. 2018)...more
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 40 percent of U.S. adults are obese. The CDC uses the Body Mass Index (BMI) as the benchmark for obesity. BMI is a calculation based on height,...more
The Americans with Disabilities Act sets forth the conditions under which employers can require medical examinations as a condition of hire. Last month, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that an employer violated the...more
ADA Violated With Unlawful Medical Inquiry and Termination, Federal Agency Charges - DALLAS - Pulmonary Specialists of Tyler and Sleep Health violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by making an unlawful medical...more
National Trucking Company Used "Back Assessment" to Screen Out Job Applicants It Regarded as Disabled, Federal Agency Charges - PORTLAND, Maine - Hirschbach Motor Lines, Inc. violated federal law by using a pre-employment...more
The ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) made a number of significant changes to the definition of “disability.” Much of the change had to do with making it easier for an individual to establish that he or she has a disability...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In an ADA action alleging that a maker of train components discriminated against a group of applicants by regarding them as disabled, a federal district court in Illinois granted the EEOC’s partial motion...more
Oklahoma Oil Drilling Company Also Made Unlawful Inquiries Into Applicants' Past Workers' Compensation Claims and Committed Other Violations, Federal Agency Charges - ST. LOUIS - Horizontal Well Drillers (HWD), an oil and...more
When used lawfully, post-offer, pre-employment medical examinations can be a powerful tool. But a recent federal district court case demonstrates the importance of carefully implementing such programs...more
Obesity does not meet the definition of a “disability” under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for either the discrimination or “regarded as” provisions of the statute, a panel of the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals...more
Since the Americans with Disabilities Act was adopted, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has considered morbid obesity to fall within the definition of a protected disability. Earlier this month, the Eighth Circuit...more
In June of last year, we pondered whether obesity is a mere physical characteristic or a disability protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as now amended by the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act...more
Question: We have a large meat processing facility in Northern Minnesota. We were recently hiring for one of our positions in the plant requiring work with large mechanical equipment. Because we consider this position to be...more
In Morriss v. BNSF Railway Company, the Eighth Circuit recently held that obesity that is not caused by an underlying physiological condition is not a covered “impairment” for purposes of the Americans with Disabilities Act...more
It is no secret that the U.S. has a weight problem. We all hear the news about how American waistlines continue to expand, the various theories behind what is causing the trend and endless advice to reverse it. The American...more
Company Openly Stated in Termination Letter That It Fired Employee Due to'Medical Problems' After Learning of Her Diabetes, Federal Agency Charges NEW ORLEANS -- Baker Wellness Center, Inc., a Baton Rouge, La., area adult day...more
Traditional employment laws often interact with traditional employee benefit laws. One such example is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)'s impact on employer-sponsored group health plans. As group health plan costs...more