• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR LAW Weekly
  • The HR Weekly
  • California Employment Law
  • New York Employment Law
  • Texas Employment Law

ADA

Limited duty may be reasonable accommodation

01/15/2020
A limited-duty assignment may be a reasonable accommodation, even if the worker doesn’t like the change. It’s not disability discrimination.

Flu season is here! FMLA, ADA and objections to vaccines

12/20/2019
Influenza season is well underway, and there is every indication that the flu bug will bite lots of workers this winter. Many will need time off to recover. That raises two important questions: Is that leave protected by the FMLA? Can employees lawfully refuse to get flu shots?

You can’t accommodate every disability

12/20/2019
A consensus on possible and practical accommodations usually emerges when the employer and employee engage in an interactive process to explore various options. But that isn’t always the case.

Transient injuries don’t usually trigger ADA

12/19/2019
In order to claim coverage under the ADA, a worker must show that he has a “physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.” Generally, most temporary conditions don’t qualify, even though they may be considered serious health conditions under the FMLA.

Report: HR, hiring managers need disability training

12/03/2019
A new report on workplace disability inclusion found many HR professionals and hiring managers are ill-prepared to hire, retain or advance individuals with disabilities.

Note refusal to cooperate in ADA process

12/02/2019
When a disabled worker needs an accommodation, the process is supposed to be interactive, with give-and-take discussions over what’s an appropriate and reasonable accommodation. If an employee won’t cooperate, carefully document her refusal.

Finite leave may be valid accommodation

12/02/2019
It’s a difficult problem: A new employee hasn’t yet earned any leave but needs to take time off for a disability-related reason. It’s a mistake to automatically terminate such an employee. Slow down.

Hiring doesn’t end accommodation process

12/02/2019
The obligation to accommodate disabled job applicants is ongoing, throughout the employee’s tenure on the job. That’s the lesson recently learned by an employer that should have known better.

Begin interactive accommodations process as soon as employee tells you about disability

11/25/2019
When confronted with an accommodation request you believe is based on a valid disability, do what you can to help. Otherwise, you may face a lawsuit, especially if the worker feels threatened or punished for his requests or is terminated.

Don’t delay: Act on termination decision ASAP

11/25/2019
When you have good reason to fire a worker, it makes little sense to put off acting on your decision. That’s especially true if it’s for poor performance. Otherwise, if the employee’s work improves in the interim and he has decided to complain about discrimination, your subsequent termination may look like retaliation.