Ill. officer battles department over cancer accommodations
Police News
Officer Brett Lauten, who's battling colon cancer, said the department violated state and federal rules on how employers treat workers with disabilities
Q&A with Paula Williams: Pregnancy-related claims remain EEOC priority
NewsOK.com
Pregnancy-related claims remain a priority for the EEOC
Q: What is the position of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on pregnancy-related discrimination?
A: The EEOC continues to prioritize pregnancy discrimination claims. It takes the position that pregnancy discrimination occurs when an employer fails to treat pregnant women the same as other applicants or employees with a similar ability or inability to work, including failing to reasonably accommodate pregnancy-related limitations under the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) and the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA). Pregnancy discrimination includes past pregnancies, current pregnancies, and contemplated pregnancies. An employer should ensure it has taken steps to adequately educate its leaders and supervisors about the legal obligations under the ADA, PDA and Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to avoid claims of discrimination, harassment and interference with parents' rights.
An employer's compliance guide to pregnancy accommodation
HR Dive
When a pregnant employee comes to HR asking for accommodation, a flurry of questions probably pass through your head at once. What do I need to offer? How do I do it? And will the arrangement be fair — for the pregnant employee, for the team and for the company?
As with most compliance challenges, HR must strike a careful balance between what applicable laws require and ensuring that the business is not unduly burdened. So what’s the current guidance on this? We’ll take it law by law.
Dealing with FMLA, ADA leave in a post-Severson landscape
HR Dive
Late last year, the 7th U.S. Circuit of Appeals threw employment law experts for a loop, and they’re still analyzing the ramifications.
The court's opinion in Severson v. Heartland Woodcraft, Inc. has called into question a widely accepted premise in the industry: That the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as a reasonable accommodation, can require leave beyond what the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires.
In Severson, an employee took 12 weeks of FMLA leave but, following surgery, requested an additional two to three months. Instead of granting the extra leave as an ADA accommodation, as many in HR have been taught to do, the employer refused the employee’s request and fired him. He sued and, upon reviewing the case, the 7th Circuit sided with the employer, saying that "a multimonth leave of absence is beyond the scope of a reasonable accommodation under the ADA."
The Triple Whammy of Dealing with FMLA, ADAAA and Workers Compensation – Webinar – Business, Business and Finance, Personnel and Human Resources Industries
MilTech
Dealing with cases that involve the Family Medical Leave Act and the American’s with Disabilities Act Amendment Act and Workers Compensation is often called the Bermuda Triangle of Employment Law. We call it a Triple Whammy as these types of cases are very complicated to understand and deal with correctly. These three laws often conflict leaving Human Resources Professionals scratching their heads and wondering how to deal with the maze of regulations. Add state leave and disability laws to this mix and it often makes for a Quadruple Whammy.
The Triple Whammy of Dealing with FMLA, ADAAA and Workers Compensation is an absolute must for all supervisors as well as human resources staff. Understanding the interplay of these laws to assure legal compliance with the rules and regulations is essential to protect the company from potentially very expensive lawsuits and settlements.
Why Should You Attend:
Violations of these laws can result in back pay, front pay and liquidated damages often resulting in multi-million dollar judgments against the company. Since we live in a very litigious world and plaintiff attorneys are looking to pounce on the mistakes of employers, you MUST know the rights and responsibilities of both the employer and the employee to keep you and your company out of court. Ignorance is not a defense AND Supervisors and managers have been held personally liable for violations of FMLA. Conflicts between these laws add to the complexity of trying to comply.
Learning Objectives:
– To recognize and analyze the interaction of the ADA, FMLA and Workers’ Compensation Laws
– To understand the purposes of the three laws and why they often conflict.
– To know the areas of interplay between the three laws that employers need to consider when managing employee absenteeism.
– To be able to describe and analyze a situation in which the three laws interact.
– To think through the situation before you act when dealing with employee absenteeism issues.
Target Audience:
– Anyone who supervises employees
– Safety and Health Professionals responsible for Workers Compensation
– Risk Managers
– Human Resources professionals
Alerts and Updates: New York City Employers: Are You Ready for the City's Brand New Reasonable Accommodation and Personal Leave Rules?
Lexology
New York City employers should review existing employee handbooks, reasonable accommodation processes, personal leave rules and forms to ensure compliance with the new bills.
On December 19, 2017, the New York City Council passed two bills, which became law on January 19, 2018, referenced as Introduction Numbers 804-A (Int. 804-A) and 1399-A (Int. 1399-A or the “Fair Work Leave Law”) that impact New York City employers’ obligations regarding handling of employee accommodations, personal leave and schedule change requests.
Int. 804-A amended the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) to (i) expressly require covered entities to engage in “cooperative dialogue” with individuals who may be entitled to reasonable accommodations under the law, and (ii) expand employer obligations by implementing a written determination requirement any time an accommodation is granted or denied.
The Fair Work Leave Law amended the New York City Administrative Code and entitles New York City employees to seek schedule changes twice per calendar year, without retaliation, for specified personal events.