Job Description Mistakes You Don’t Want to Make
HR Law 101 Ep.4: What You Need to Know About Creating Effective Job Descriptions
A federal appeals court recently clarified that an employee may qualify for a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) even if they can perform essential job functions without such an...more
In a decision issued on March 25, 2025, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals clarified the scope of protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regarding workplace accommodations....more
The Americans with Disabilities Act defines a protected qualified individual as one who can perform the essential functions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodations. ...more
On October 17, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas entered summary judgment in favor of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas, as representative of the Kansas City Board of Public...more
A school district in Texas recently prevailed in a failure-to-hire lawsuit when the court ruled that a legally blind applicant for a teaching position could not demonstrate that she’d have been able to manage student...more
When employers think of “medical leave,” most minds understandably jump to the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or time off that employees may be entitled to under company-provided policies (sick leave, vacation, PTO, etc.)....more
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw a number of federal court decisions involving disability discrimination claims from teachers who requested full-time remote work as an accommodation for compromised immune systems or other...more
When a disabled employee requests a workplace accommodation, the Americans with Disabilities Act instructs the employer to determine whether the requested accommodation (or an alternative) allows the employee to perform the...more
When reviewing requests for accommodation from sick or injured workers, employers often focus on whether the requested accommodation is reasonable or whether it imposes an undue hardship on the company. ...more
During the COVID-19 pandemic and afterwards, employers have faced a growing number of requests for remote work arrangements based on a medical disability. The Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to grant...more
When facing requests from a qualified disabled worker, the Americans with Disabilities Act allows employers to choose an effective accommodation, even if it is not the one preferred by the employee. Earlier this week, the...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a summary judgment award on an employee’s failure-to-accommodate claim. The Court’s decision focused on the employer’s improperly narrow delineation of the...more
Last month, we reported a First Circuit Court of Appeals decision that rejected an Americans with Disabilities Act claim brought by a teacher who was denied an extended leave of absence for recovery from surgery. The court...more
In last week’s EmployNews, we discussed a growing trend of employees basing requests for remote work on mental or physical disabilities, and therefore requesting accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act. In...more
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia recently rejected a school principal’s argument that remote work was a reasonable accommodation for her asthma and restrictive lung disease that she claimed were...more
In EEOC v. Charter Communications, LLC, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently held an employee with a disability may be entitled to an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accommodation to get to work when attendance...more
Fifth Circuit precedent recognizes the “general consensus among courts” that regular, in-person work is an essential function of most jobs. Yet the continued viability of this premise has been in question, given the ability...more
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
In recent years, the use of service dogs and other animals has expanded from assisting persons with visual impairments to others with chronic diseases or psychological disabilities. The Americans with Disabilities Act...more
Your job descriptions may be more important than you think, and what better time to review and update them than the start of the new year? In this blog, we discuss why job descriptions are important and the things to consider...more
The federal appeals court in Chicago has provided helpful guidance on employers’ obligation to accommodate qualified individuals’ medical restrictions under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in a case involving a...more
On August 15, 2022, the New Jersey Appellate Division declined to reinstate a disability bias class action brought by a New Jersey Transit train operator who was required undergo a sleep apnea screening due to the...more
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employers cannot discriminate against an otherwise qualified individual with a disability or fail to provide reasonable accommodations that allow that person to perform the...more
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, employers are required to consider reassignment to an existing vacant position as a last ditch form of reasonable accommodation for an employee unable to return to their previous...more
If disabled employees are no longer able to perform the essential functions of their job even with reasonable accommodation, under the Americans with Disabilities Act the employer must consider transferring the workers to an...more