ADA in the News: December 2, 2014

Settlement Agreement: Resorts Casino Hotel

Disability Network Will Pay $38,500 to Settle EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit

According to the EEOC's suit, Disability Network denied a deaf employee, who worked as an independent living specialist for the non-profit, reasonable accommodations such as TTY equipment, a video phone and the ability to use text messaging. The complaint also alleged that Disability Network rejected the employee's requests, failed to provide him with alternate accommodations, and finally fired him because he is deaf.

Such alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). After first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process, the EEOC sued Disability Network (EEOC v. Metropolitan Center for Independent Living d/b/a Disability Network / Wayne County, Case No. 4:14-CV-12118) in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District Court of Michigan.

In addition to the $38,500 in monetary relief, the five-year consent decree settling the suit provides for training on the ADA and enjoins Disability Network from terminating an employee on the basis of disability or failing to provide reasonable accommodations in the future.

Practice co-owned by Lancaster County coroner sued over alleged HIV bias

Philly.com

A patient alleged in a lawsuit filed Monday in federal court in Philadelphia that a medical practice co-owned by Lancaster County's coroner discriminated against him and his family because he has HIV.

Cruise Ship Spa Company Accused of Discriminating Against HIV-Positive Applicant

Miami New Times

Daniel Dowd has lived with HIV for fifteen years. He has overcome the shock of diagnosis, the fear of death, and the mountains of pills. But it wasn't until he applied for a job with a Miami-based cruise ship contractor that Dowd says he faced open discrimination.

Dowd was poised to become a personal trainer for Steiner -- a company contracted to run the gym and spa aboard a Miami-based cruise ship -- when he was suddenly sacked after disclosing he was HIV-positive.

"You just can't do this in this day and age," he says. "It's discriminatory!"

ADA: Does “Regarded As” Still Matter? Letter of the Law: Employment Law Issues A-Z

The National Law Review

One of the things that makes the Americans with Disabilities Act distinctive among discrimination laws is its “regarded as” prong.  It protects not only people who in factare disabled from discrimination, but also people who are regarded as disabled. R is for “regarded as” and what it means for most employers and employees in 2014.

Accommodating Mental Health as an ADA Disability

Corporate Counsel

Mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety and bipolar disorders may be less visible than other disabilities, but that doesn’t mean they are any less acute, or have a lesser impact on an employee. “Just as with physical disorders, mental disorders that rise to the level of qualifying as a ‘disability’ under the Americans with Disabilities Act (and similar state and local laws) require the employer to provide accommodations to allow the employee to perform essential job functions,” explains John Lord Jr. of Foley & Lardner in a recent blog post.

Here are some of his tips for better providing mental health disability support:

  • Review job descriptions: Start with written job descriptions, and then contact the employee’s direct supervisors to find out what his or her essential jobs functions are, advises Lord. Then tailor the response from there. For example, if being at the workplace isn’t essential, maybe allowing the person to work from home part of the time would be a helpful accommodation.

  • Obtain documentation and document: It’s OK to ask for documentation from the employee’s health care provider, especially since mental health problems aren’t always readily apparent. In that vein, it’s important to then document any accommodations agreed on with the employee and have him or her sign an acknowledgment, he says.

  • Meet with the employee: At these meetings (and there can be several), HR personnel, supervisors and leave administrators can discuss with the person potential solutions. “The initial meetings should be seen as brainstorming sessions,” says Lord, but eventually the final meetings should outline the accommodations.

 

Pregnant worker's case to test justices' 'blind spot'

USA TODAY

When Peggy Young's pregnancy discrimination claim against United Parcel Service comes before the Supreme Court Wednesday, the potential implications will be greater for the court itself than for Young or UPS.

Several cases involving gender discrimination and reproductive rights have hit a 5-4 roadblock at the conservative-leaning court under Chief Justice John Roberts. Now groups representing women, workers, employers and others are watching to see how the justices handle the company's refusal to reassign Young to light duty during her pregnancy.

After last June's ruling that Hobby Lobby and other employers with religious objections could deny their employees health insurance coverage for contraceptives, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg went so far as to suggest her male colleagues had a "blind spot" on the issue.

Teacher's case against diocese headed to trial

Fort Wayne Journal Gazette

With a ruling from the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday afternoon, a case stemming from the use of in vitro fertilization by a local Roman Catholic schoolteacher will head to trial later this month.

The federal court of appeals in Chicago ruled the Fort Wayne-South Bend Catholic Diocese did not meet the high bar to be spared the risks inherent with going to trial.

The move lets stand an earlier ruling by U.S. District Judge Robert L. Miller Jr. in September. He ruled the diocese might have discriminated against a former language arts teacher when it did not renew her contract after she underwent in vitro fertilization.

The Supreme Court May Limit Pregnant Women's Rights: Here's What You Should Know

Huffington Post

This week, the Supreme Court will consider a case that could limit pregnant women's options to protect themselves from discrimination in the workplace.

 

Employment Law: The ins and outs ADA

Thehour.com

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