'Food demonstrators' denied seats get $2.6M ADA settlement
Dive Brief:
- A Texas-based company that provides "food demonstrators" to retailers and warehouse stores has agreed to pay $2.65 million to settle a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) lawsuit alleging disability bias against the workers. More than one hundred former workers will share the settlement.
- The agency said the employees, who prepared and served food samples to shoppers, were only allowed to sit on a stool for 10 minutes every two hours. EEOC alleged that permission to sit for longer periods of time — which the employer denied — would have been a reasonable accommodation for some employees with disabilities.
- In addition to the payout, the consent decree requires the employer to designate ADA coordinators to address requests for accommodation, revise its disability discrimination and reasonable accommodation policies, provide training to managers and employees and establish a toll-free number for employees to obtain information about requests for accommodations.
Dive Insight:
The ADA generally requires employers to provide a reasonable accommodation for an employee's disability, unless the company would suffer an undue hardship as a result. Undue hardship means that the accommodation would be "too difficult or too expensive to provide, in light of the employer's size, financial resources, and the needs of the business," EEOC has explained.
Accommodation can take various forms. It can be something simple and low-cost, such as a policy exemption that allows for a chair or a snack or drink. In fact, EEOC clearly takes the position that modifying a workplace policy because of an employee's disability can be a reasonable accommodation, it has explained.
Experts recommend that employers empower managers to grant simple adjustments or policy exemptions, noting that by getting into "ADA land," as one expert dubbed it, employers can sometimes turn a small problem in a major issue. Earlier this year, Hyatt Corporation agreed to pay $85,000 and provide six weeks of paid leave — worth about $15,000 — to settle an EEOC lawsuit claiming that a hotel failed to accommodate an employee with a chronic back ailment when he asked for a chair.
Whenever an employee reveals a need or a problem, to ensure that requests for ADA accommodation start off on sound legal footing, experts have suggested that HR train supervisors to ask: "How can I help you?"
Because the ADA does not require that accommodation requests be in writing or that "magic" language be used, employers should also have a system in place that helps managers and supervisors recognize accommodation requests. Experts say the system should provide help in determining what accommodations are available, as well as assistance for choosing and monitoring accommodations.
Court: Demoting a Disabled Employee Can Be a Reasonable Accommodation
Disabilities can be accommodated in many different ways. This is just one option.
6th Circuit says judge ignored ADA amendments in tossing nurse's bias claim
A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday revived a licensed practical nurse’s claim that the operator of a Michigan rehabilitation center forced her to quit because back pain prevented her from working more than twelve hours in a row.
A two-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the federal judge who granted summary judgment to Laurel Health Care Co ignored 2008 amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that expanded the scope of the law and placed too high of a bar on plaintiff Rita Morrissey to show that she had a disability under the law.
Six Ways Accessibility Will Impact Businesses And Website Design In The Future
Most people take websites for granted. They pay bills, book flights and download white papers online with relative ease. But not everyone assumes that digital tools are designed with them in mind, and that’s a failure for everyone.
One in four U.S. adults report having a disability that impacts major life activities. That’s 61 million friends, neighbors and family members who deserve a digital experience that is just as user-friendly as anyone else’s.
Integrating website accessibility into your design process and culture is a step toward addressing this very human problem of exclusivity. And while a sense of justice is enough to move many organizations to act, there is also a strong business case. Offering a user experience that caters to only a select group of users alienates potential brand advocates and carries serious legal risks.
According to the Americans with Disabilities Act Title III Regulations, public properties, including public websites, have to adhere to accessibility parameters. In other words, your digital presence must be designed and coded so that people can carry out their desired tasks, from completing a form to making a purchase. This should extend beyond your basic site to search tools, mobile apps and social media.
Organizations often find themselves on the wrong side of this issue. Rather than proactively carving out a path to invite accessibility in as a priority, they are reacting to negative feedback and even lawsuits. These companies are well meaning but don’t know what to do to ensure compliance.
Health Care Industry Employers Time to Redouble Efforts to Avoid Claims of Disability Discrimination (Part 1)
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities. Title I of the ADA covers employment by private employers with 15 or more employees as well as state and local government employers of the same size.
The ADA protects a qualified individual with a disability from discrimination or harassment based on disability, and also provides that, absent undue hardship, a qualified individual with a disability is entitled to reasonable accommodation to perform, or apply for, a job or to enjoy the benefits and privileges of employment. The ADA also includes rules regarding when, and to what extent, employers may seek medical information from applicants or employees. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces the employment provisions of the ADA. Most states also have their own laws prohibiting employment discrimination on the basis of disability. Some of these laws may apply to smaller employers and provide protections in addition to those available under the ADA.
Since the ADA was amended in 2008, the number of disability discrimination claims filed with the U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has increased by 50%, and represent almost a third of all claims filed in 2018, the last year for which statistics are available. The health care industry is a prime target for such claims, given that it has a high incidence of occupational injury and illness. Health care workers confront a wide range of significant workplace hazards, more so than most workers, including potential exposure to airborne and bloodborne infectious disease, needlestick injuries, musculoskeletal injuries, and stress. Also, health care workers with occupational or non-occupational illness or injury may face unique challenges given legitimate concerns that an illness or injury could impact patient care and safety.
Issues related to ADA compliance include:
- when someone is an “employee” covered by the ADA (as opposed to an independent contractor);
- when someone is an "individual with a disability" under the ADA;
- how to determine if a health care applicant or employee with a disability is qualified for ADA purposes;
- what types of reasonable accommodations health care workers with disabilities may need and the limitations on a health care employer’s obligation to provide reasonable accommodation;
- how a health care employer should handle safety concerns about applicants and employees; and
- when an employer may ask health care applicants or employees questions about their medical conditions or require medical examinations.
Former Enfield School Board Member Files Lawsuit
She said she was denied an equal opportunity to serve on the board, participate in board communications and access the content in meetings.
Veterans Turned Away Because Of Service Animals: Lessons You Can Learn
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) recently announced settlements with two hotel properties to resolve complaints under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) involving service animals. In both cases, the individuals involved were veterans with PTSD and both properties refused to honor their reservations because the veterans were accompanied by service animals. The cases highlight the most common mistakes hotel operators make in handling guests with service animals.
What’s the Difference Between a Service Dog vs. Therapy Dog vs. Emotional Support Animal?
If you’re like me you’ve probably used the terms service dog, therapy dog, and emotional support dog interchangeably and without much thought to it. But in reality, there are major differences that separate these types of dogs and their functions to their owners also vary too.
Are Your Teachers Ministers?
Religious schools should be aware of the ministerial exception, its potential application to certain employment decisions, and the fact that courts across the country may interpret and apply it very differently.
The United States Supreme Court first clarified the ministerial exception in the landmark 2012 decision, Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. In this decision, the Court barred disability discrimination and retaliation claims under state and federal law by a teacher at a church school based upon the ministerial exception by recognizing that, under the First Amendment, churches and religious schools must be free to make employment decisions regarding their ministers.
In Hosanna-Tabor, the teacher at issue, Cheryl Perich, alleged that the Lutheran school where she worked fired her after she was diagnosed with narcolepsy in violation of the ADA. In finding for the school, the Court held "the members of a religious group put their faith in the hands of their ministers. Requiring a Church to accept or retain an unwanted minister, or punishing a Church for failing to do so, intrudes upon more than a mere employment decision. Such action interferes with the internal governance of the Church, depriving the Church of control over the selection of those who will personify its belief."
What to Do When Schools Discriminate Against Your Child With a Disability
The majority of families with disabled youth have interfaced with school employees who just do not “get” disability or disability law. When these shortcomings occur and become chronic abuse, neglect or discrimination, it is usually because employees are ignorant of our nation’s civil rights laws or because they lack sufficient training to be able to incorporate them effectively into buildings or classrooms. Having a child with medical issues is enough of a hurdle within families without parents or caregivers having to fight education rights battles as well. So the question then becomes, when is enough abuse enough? The sharp, pointy answer is: when you are done allowing them to get away with harming your child.
Many misunderstandings occur about ADA, IDEA, the Rehabilitation Act, IEPs and 504s, and HIPAA within publicly funded schools. Yet all citizens, adult or not, disabled or not, student or not, are entitled to equitable access and opportunity. In public schools that receive federal funding, these federal laws must be strictly adhered to in order to continue to receive federal funding. But how the application of these civil rights laws play out in the trenches of the schools themselves can be much different than intended. It is common for parents, direct caregivers, and especially students to feel misunderstood and disempowered when discrimination occurs.
The Physics (and Economics, and Politics) of Wheelchairs on Planes
Flying can be stressful, painful, or simply impossible for wheelchair users. Critics say it doesn’t have to be that way.