Meetings and Events Technology Alone Can't Solve Accessibility Challenges
Skift
Hospitality professionals are well-versed on the various components that make up a great meeting, conference, or event. These can include a thoughtful keynote speaker, a well thought-out menu, or a one-of-a-kind interactive experience, along with pervasive Wi-Fi access and copious meeting areas.
But what about event accessibility and inclusiveness?
There were nearly 40 million Americans living with a disability in 2015, making up 12.6 percent of the total population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, which defines disability as a spectrum of “limitations of activities and restrictions to full participation at school, at work, at home, or in the community.” These can be hearing or vision difficulty, cognitive difficulty, ambulatory difficulty, self-care, or independent-living difficulty.
Prior Entitlement to FMLA Leave Is Not A Free Ticket To Miss Work For Non-FMLA Covered Reasons
Lexology
The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania recently upheld an employer’s decision to terminate an employee under its policy against excessive absenteeism, in spite of the fact that the former employee had previously taken leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”), because the absences at issue were not related to her FMLA qualified condition. See Bertig v. Julia Ribaudo Healthcare Grp., LLC, 2017 WH Cases2d 390378 (M.D. PA 2017).
Accommodations under the ADA
Journal Review
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has taken the longstanding position that granting extended leave to an employee is considered a form of reasonable accommodation. However, a recent 7th Circuit Court of Appeals case — whose rulings apply to Indiana employers — has cast this EEOC position aside.
In Severson v. Heartland Woodcraft Inc., the 7th Circuit was faced with the issue of an employee who injured his back outside work, received his 12 weeks of unpaid leave under the Family Medical Leave Act, had surgery scheduled on the last day of his FMLA leave and requested an additional two months of leave of leave to recover from his surgery. The employer determined that it could not extend the leave for another two months and invited Severson to reapply for work once he had recovered from his surgery. The 7th Circuit, in analyzing the case, determined that reasonable accommodation under the ADA was limited to those measures that enable the disabled employee to work and that an employee who needs long-term medical leave cannot work and thus is not a qualified individual under the ADA.
A word of caution: the 7th Circuit pointed out that an employee can still be considered able to do his/her job if he/she only needs a few days or even a few weeks of non-FMLA time to deal with an intermittent condition. It was the multi-month period in this case that caused the ADA disqualification. A slight change in the Severson factual scenario would have changed the court’s ruling.
J. Courtney Cunningham Settles Website Accessibility Lawsuit Against City of Miami
PR Web
The city of Miami and local disability advocate Eddie Sierra have entered into a federal Consent Decree that guarantees the deaf and hard of hearing have equal access to video content on city’s website. According to court documents, the Consent Decree resolves Eddie Sierra v. City of Miami, Case Number 17-CV-20823, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Previously, video content was inaccessible to those with hearing disabilities because there were no closed captions. Court documents show that under the consent decree, the city agreed to adopt the video success criteria of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, an international standard for website accessibility. The city also agreed to adhere to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, according to court documents.
Indies Ask House for Protection From 'Frivolous' ADA Suits
Progressive Grocer
The National Grocers Association (NGA), the trade association representing the independent supermarket industry, and 28 state trade associations, sent a letter to the U.S. House of Representatives that encouraged lawmakers to pass the ADA Reform and Education Act of 2017 (H.R. 620). According to the NGA, the legislation aims to “protect businesses from frivolous lawsuits brought by ethically questionable lawyers often only seeking a payout instead of protecting disabled patrons.”
To give stores the chance to correct potential violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the bill would give supermarket operators 60-days to respond to allegations after receiving written warning, and 120-days to make substantial progress toward addressing the alleged violation.
“In recent years, supermarket operators are no longer simply negotiating slip-and-fall lawsuits, but patent trolling and the threat of ADA litigation as well,” noted the letter, addressed to Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). “Often, ADA litigators have never been in the store that they are threatening to sue, or do not have a client that has been injured or harmed in any way. These attorneys regularly send threatening letters to store owners in hopes of an easy settlement.”
“Independent grocers are committed to complying with all ADA guidelines and making their stores accessible to disabled customers,” said Chris Jones, VP of government relations and counsel at Arlington, Va.-based NGA. “Any supermarket found to have shortcomings under the ADA should be granted an opportunity to take corrective measures without the threat of a frivolous lawsuit from lawyers who are more interested in making a buck than protecting the rights of the disabled.”
Independent Supermarkets Fight Frivolous ADA Lawsuits
Abasto, Food and Beverage Industry News
The National Grocers Association (NGA), the trade association representing the independent supermarket industry, and 28 state trade associations urged the U.S. House of Representatives to pass the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Reform and Education Act of 2017 (H.R. 620) in a letter sent to lawmakers.
Arizona Attorney Suing Businesses Over ADA Violations - Again
KJZZ
An Arizona attorney who sued hundreds of local businesses for violating state protections for those with disabilities is back at it.
Peter Strojnik, who represented a controversial nonprofit called AID, has so far filed 59 new lawsuits against local hotels and motels on behalf of a man from Casa Grande for a range of violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
This comes not longer after Strojnik settled a long running legal battle with the Arizona Attorney General over more than a thousand lawsuits against Arizona businesses for allegedly violating the Arizonans with Disabilities Act. That deal restricts the group from filing anymore such lawsuits in state court, but it does not prohibit Strojnik from suing in federal court under the ADA.
Disabled customer accuses Artesia restaurant of violating ADA
Northern California Record
A disabled man is suing Artesia restaurant owners, alleging disability discrimination and failure to uphold Americans with Disabilities Act regulations.
Andres Gomez filed a complaint Nov. 15 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against Asian Taste Connection, doing business as Ten Ten Seafood Restaurant and Does 1-10, alleging they failed to provide full and safe equal access to its facilities, in violation of ADA and the California Disabled Persons Act.