ADA

Big changes proposed for ADA accessibility rules

11/01/2005

You may need to make new accommodations for disabled customers and employees if proposed regulations win approval. The Access Board, an independent agency …

Turn to Last-Chance Agreements for Legal Leverage

10/01/2005

Many employers use "last-chance agreements" to give employees one final opportunity to turn around attendance, productivity and attitude problems. Here’s good news if you use last-chance agreements on employees with drug and alcohol problems: The ADA and many state laws give you the leverage to keep employees clean … and fire them if they’re not …

Don’t drag your feet on employees’ accommodation requests

10/01/2005

Some problems will eventually go away if you wait long enough. But that’s not the attitude to take when employees request workplace accommodations for their physical or mental conditions.
The …

USERRA: Know your duty to returning disabled reservists

10/01/2005

THE LAW. You may know that the federal Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) requires employers to reinstate employees who take military-related leave, plus it prohibits job discrimination against …

Drug testing is perfectly legal … if done properly

10/01/2005

Q. I have an employee who says that our drug-testing program is a violation of his constitutional rights. What can I tell him (or show him) to prove that we’re well within the law? —S.H., Texas

Teach managers how to handle staff returning from injury

10/01/2005

Issue: Employees who return from injury leave may or may not be covered under the ADA.
Risk: By treating employees as if they’re “disabled” (even if they’re not), supervisors create …

Self-diagnosis won’t cut it; require proof of disability

09/01/2005

Do you have an employee whose sniffles, coughing or health complaints drive co-workers crazy? Has she told you that she’s disabled and can’t help the snorting and sneezing? You don’t need …

Know your ADA responsibilities for employees with cancer

09/01/2005

The EEOC published a Q&A document last month explaining when cancer is a “disability” under the ADA and how you should accommodate employees with cancer.
More than 1 million Americans …

Fewer employers offering flextime schedules

09/01/2005

A study by the Society for Human Resource Management says only 56 percent of employers now offer flex schedules, down from 65 percent in 2002. Why the change? Experts say …

Review your personality test: Is it an illegal ‘medical’ exam?

09/01/2005

Issue: A recent court ruling says certain employment personality tests may violate the ADA.
Risk: If your test screens out people with mental disorders, it could be deemed an illegal …