ADA in the News: September 23, 2015

Sensient Sued By EEOC for Disability Discrimination

Sensient Natural Ingredients LLC, a producer of dried onions, garlic and vegetable products, violated federal law when it discriminated against workers due to their disabilities, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed yesterday.

According to EEOC's lawsuit, several of the company's workers at its Livingston, Calif., facility took extended leaves of absence to undergo disability-related care such as cancer treatments and surgeries. The federal agency asserts that Sensient denied additional time off for disability-related accommodations pursuant to its overly restrictive leave policy. EEOC contends that Sensient further denied several workers' requests to return to work when their conditions improved, despite clearance by their corresponding physicians.

EEOC filed its lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California (EEOC v. Sensient Dehydrated Flavors Co., Sensient Natural Ingredients LLC, et al., Case No. 1:15-cv-01431---BAM), after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement. In its suit, EEOC alleged that the dried food producers discriminated against a class of employees due to their disability, in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). EEOC's suit seeks back pay, compensatory and punitive damages on behalf of the class members and injunctive relief to prevent future disability discrimination.

Proposal to Change Handicapped Parking Signs Gets Mixed Reaction From Disability Community

CT Newsjunkie

There is disagreement within the disability community about efforts to update traditional handicapped parking signs to reflect what people can do instead of what they can’t.

The new logo would replace the current stick figure in a wheelchair with a sleeker wheelchair design that represents a person on the move.

“Words and images have meaning — they shape our worldview,” state Sen. Beth Bye, D-West Hartford, said at a press conference Tuesday at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford. “When we change this image that appears passive, to one that implies motion, we more accurately represent the reality that people with disabilities are mobile.”

The “Change the Sign. Change the Attitude” campaign is being spearheaded by an advocacy group, the Arc of Farmington Valley, or FAVARH. Executive Director Stephen Morris said the idea was brought to him by client Todd Theriault after it became law in New York.

“Our hope is that we can influence the public perception of people with accessibility needs,” Morris said. “By bringing attention to the issue we expect we will be able to emphasize to the general public that people they see as “handicapped” are in most ways just as capable as you and me.”

But some people with severe disabilities say the so-called accessible icon does not reflect their reality.

Addiction, Anonymity, And The ADA: A Case Study

Rhode Island Public Radio

People who are in recovery from addiction or mental illness might be open to sharing their story with anyone who asks. Or they might not. There's still enough stigma and misunderstanding about the disease of addiction that keeping it private might feel safer.

The ADA for Addiction And Mental Illness
Just in case, though, there's the Americans with Disabilities Act. It protects people who are in recovery from or treatment for addiction or mental illness from being excluded from certain opportunities or having to disclose private health information.

But it doesn't seem to apply for people who want to practice law in Rhode Island - at least according to the Rhode Island Disability Law Center and the ACLU. They've filed a complaint under the ADA with the U.S. Dept. of Justice on behalf of a law school grad who wants questions about disabilities (like addiction) removed from the bar application.

What's Your Boss Allowed to Ask When You Call In Sick?

Yahoo News

You wake up feeling sick, and you call your boss to let her know that you're taking a sick day. Most managers will simply tell you to feel better soon and let you get back to resting. But what if you have a manager who demands to know exactly what's wrong with you and makes you feel like you need to prove you're sick enough to justify the day off?

Most workers are unclear on what their employers have the right to ask when they call out sick. And many employers aren't sure either!

In general, employers are allowed to ask for the details of your illness. "It's reasonable for a manager to ask an employee what's wrong. Otherwise, it would be a no-questions-asked sick leave policy, and that would quickly be abused," says Bryan Cavanaugh, a St. Louis-based employment attorney. "Asking what is wrong requires the employee to give a brief and general explanation about why he or she is absent, e.g., the employee's child is sick, the employee has a general illness or the employee has a major or minor injury."

In general, when you call in sick, your manager can ask any follow-up questions she wishes. Of course, as a general best practice, managers should respect your privacy and stick to asking about when you expect to return to work, but the law does give nosy employers some leeway in most cases.

However, there's a key exception to this: if the reason for your absence is a medical condition that's protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The ADA offers protections to employees with physical or mental impairments that substantially limit one or more major life activities, such as seeing, hearing, speaking, walking or breathing. A person with, for example, epilepsy, HIV or a substantial hearing or visual impairment would generally be covered, but someone with a minor condition of short duration -- such as a cold, the flu or a sprained ankle -- generally wouldn't be covered.

Lawsuit over Michigan cop's HIV diatribe settled for $40000

MLive.com

A woman who was scolded by a police officer for not disclosing to him that she was diagnosed with HIV during a traffic stop and vehicle search has agreed to a $40,000 settlement in her lawsuit against Dearborn.

Bisbano's faces ADA violation lawsuit

The Vermilion

Well-known Lafayette eatery Bisbano’s Pizza Parlor is being sued for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

The suit, brought forward by Liam Doyle, 26, who is wheelchair bound due to cerebral palsy, claims Bisbano’s, which is located on Johnston near the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, is violating the ADA because the restroom doors and stalls are too narrow for wheelchairs, the entrance lacks a ramp up the step and there are no handicap parking spaces in the parking lot.

Disability group sues Tacopocalypse over accessibility issue

Business Record

Tacopocalypse is being sued by an Iowa group focused on rights for people with disabilities over making the popular East Village restaurant's entrances wheelchair-accessible, reports DesMoinesRegister.com. A lawyer for Disability Rights Iowa filed a federal lawsuit saying the two doors letting customers into Tacopocalypse have steps without ramps for wheelchairs, a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Owner Sam Auen's lawyer said he is talks with the disabilities group and plans to put in a concrete ramp.

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