Lexology
In Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. LHC Group Inc., the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals evaluated a trial court’s grant of summary judgment to an employer on an employee’s disability discrimination claims. In reaching its decision on the disability discrimination claim related to the employee’s discharge, the Fifth Circuit adopted a prima facie case formulation that will likely make it more difficult for employers to obtain summary judgment in disability discrimination cases involving termination.
Settlement Agreement: Tropicana Atlantic City Corp.
This Agreement resolves an investigation and compliance review conducted by the United States Department of Justice (the "Department") of the Tropicana under title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Kaufman Children’s Center Sued by EEOC for Disability Discrimination
According to the lawsuit, Kaufman Children's Center refused to let the employee, an Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) Therapist, return to work in a light duty capacity or offer the employee another reasonable accommodation after she was off work due to a serious cardiac condition. When she sought to return to her previous position, Kaufman Children's Center formally fired her because of her disability, the EEOC said.
US: Online-only retailer settles for DOJ over ADA violations
FreshPlaza
Online Internet grocer Peapod, LLC and parent company Ahold U.S.A., Inc. reached a settlement with the Department of Justice over charges that the company violated the Americans with Disabilities Act because its website and mobile app were inaccessible to those with disabilities.
Peapod provides consumers with the ability to remotely and independently browse, shop, and purchase groceries for home delivery. But a compliance review by the DOJ under Title III of the ADA found that disabled individuals were unable to fully participate in and benefit from the defendants’ services, the government alleged.
For example, the DOJ alleged that blind consumers, or those with limited vision, could not use Peapod’s site or apps because certain images, buttons, and form fields were unlabelled or had inaccurate alternative text. It further alleged that pop-up modal windows were not reported to screen readers, tables were missing header information, frames were not named or identified, and boldface type was used to show which fields were required.
Inaccurate captioning for videos on the site also rendered it unusable for deaf or hard-of-hearing customers, the DOJ said, and individuals with physical disabilities that would impact manual dexterity faced barriers because the Java script used on the site was not available to those who cannot make use of a mouse.
Lexology
On December 29, 2014, the District of New Hampshire issued a decision denying Summary Judgment and allowing a claim under the ADA to proceed to a jury after the former employee’s supervisor stated: “Your Asperger’s got in the way of your ability to interact with your boss, and we are tired of it,” while informing the former employee that his employment contract would not be renewed.Bellerose v. SAU 39, 13-cv-404.
New year, new challenges: What hospitality employers need to know
Phoenix Business Journal (blog)
Americans with Disabilities Act accommodations
All employers, not just those in the hospitality sector, need to be concerned with increased enforcement and litigation over ADA accommodation issues. The EEOC has been actively pursuing hotels and restaurants, especially those with national presence on a class action basis, for failure to accommodate claims. Specifically, the EEOC has been hyper-focused on businesses who are imposing inflexible leave policies for their employees. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, employers are required to provide reasonable accommodation to qualifying employees with a disability. In some cases, additional leave may be appropriate as an accommodation, even when the employee has exhausted all the leave to which they are entitled under the FMLA and/or the employer's separate leave policies. Should you have an employee who requires extended leave, it is important to remember the ADA requires that you engage in the interactive process with the employee to determine whether and what accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.
The Importance of Being Accommodating
Workforce Management (blog)
The Americans with Disabilities Act imposes on employers an absolute duty to determine whether or not they can accommodate an employee’s disability.