EEOC Issues Publications on the Rights of Job Applicants and Employees Who Have HIV Infection
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued two documents addressing workplace rights for individuals with HIV infection under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), including the right to be free from employment discrimination and harassment, and the right to reasonable accommodations in the workplace.
HIV Discrimination Still Exists in the Restaurant Industry
Munchies_ Food by VICE
The simple fact is that HIV continues to be stigmatized and even criminalized in the US. Not disclosing one’s HIV status to a partner is still considered a crime in some states. In 2009, an HIV-positive man in Michigan was charged under the state’s anti-terrorism law after allegedly biting his neighbor during a dispute. Most recently, the Charlie Sheen saga has resurrected the belief that people living with HIV possess a “deadly weapon” or that they are, at the very least, selfish and negligent. (Meanwhile, as the Positive Justice Project points out, no one has ever been prosecuted for knowingly transmitting the cancer-causing human papillomavirus, or HPV.)
OHM Concessions Will Pay $151,000 to Settle EEOC Disability Discrimination Suit
OHM Concessions Group, LLC, which operates Dunkin' Donuts stores at Baltimore-Washington International Airport (BWI), will pay $151,000 and furnish significant equitable relief to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
Joan McMahon O'Donnell successfully performed her job duties as a regional manager at the company's BWI Dunkin' Donuts locations, according to the suit. After O'Donnell was diagnosed with breast cancer and requested unpaid leave for surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatment, Dunkin' Donuts refused to provide a reasonable accommodation and instead abruptly discharged her because of her disability, EEOC charged.
Such alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. OHM Concessions Group, LLC, d/b/a Dunkin Donuts, Civil Action No. 1:15-cv-01946) in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, Baltimore Division after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.
In addition to the $151,000 in monetary relief to O'Donnell, the two-year consent decree resolving the lawsuit prohibits OHM from engaging in any future disability discrimination. OHM will implement a new attendance policy which includes a provision for requesting reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities. The restaurant will provide annual ADA training to all supervisors, managers and human resources employees. OHM will also post a notice about the settlement and will report to EEOC about how it handled any internal complaints of alleged disability discrimination.
7th Circuit issues guidance to employers facing ADA 'regarded as claims
HR.BLR.com
A recent case decided by the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals—which covers Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin—provides helpful guidance for addressing "regarded as" disabled claims brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Is Your Website Built for the Blind? If Not, You Could Lose an Ugly Lawsuit
The Financial Brand
What you don't know about new ADA regulations governing website accessibility for people with visual disabilities could embroil your financial institution in a costly lawsuit. Here's what financial marketers need to do now — before the April 2016 deadline.
Best practices for accommodating pregnant and postpartum employees
Lexology
An overview of the current legal landscape is as follows:
- Anti-Discrimination (PDA and State Anti-Discrimination Laws) Pregnancy can form the basis for a sex-based discrimination claim under the PDA and state anti-discrimination laws. In the wake of Young, employers should generally offer pregnant employees the same accommodations that a non-pregnant employee would be offered with the same light-duty limitations. Exceptions to this rule will be limited and should be discussed with counsel prior to implementation.
- Disability (ADA and State Disability Discrimination Laws) Pregnancy itself is not a disability, but pregnancy-related medical conditions may be a disability requiring accommodation under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or applicable state disability discrimination laws.
- State and Local Pregnancy Accommodations Laws Some state and local governments have enacted legislation that requires accommodations for pregnant employees regardless of whether they qualify as "disabled" due to a pregnancy-related medical condition. Employers may be required to give some accommodations automatically. For example, the Minnesota's Women's Economic Security Act requires that employers provide the following accommodations to pregnant employees with no showing of medical necessity required and regardless of any claimed employer burden–restroom breaks, seating, and limits on lifting.
Decoding Disability Discrimination
Human Resource Executive Online
New research uncovers biases against disabled applicants in the hiring process, while experts say HR needs to play a frontline role in helping recruiters and managers overcome any stigma they may have attached to people with disabilities.
JD Supra
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has once again postponed its proceeding to amend regulations that would spell out the obligations of retailers, hotels, restaurants, places of entertainment and other businesses to make their websites accessible to individuals with disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). While current rules give clear, detailed guidance on wheelchair ramps, signage, and other standards for physical structures, they do not mandate the use of specific technological standards to ensure that websites or mobile applications are accessible to disabled individuals. Instead, Title III of the ADA generally requires that “places of public accommodation” ensure equal access to the goods and services they offer. This ultimately leaves it to the courts to decide what measures must be deployed, and parties most often settle these claims. As a result, those businesses that have been waiting on the sidelines to adopt web accessibility solutions after the adoption of rules and timelines now face even greater litigation risks.
Deaf Employee Who Was Fired For Positive Drug Test Result Could Not Show Disability Discrimination
The National Law Review
A deaf employee who tested positive for hydrocodone – but could not produce a prescription for the drug – was not discriminated against due to his disability when his employer fired him. Phillips v. PPG Industries, Inc., Case No. 5:14-CV-1274 (N.D. Alabama Nov. 24, 2015).
A stinker of a situation in New Jersey: Fired for flatulence
HR.BLR.com
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits employers from discriminating against an employee because of a protected disability. Protected disabilities include mental and physical impairments and are too numerous to count. Does stinkiness constitute a protected disability? A recently filed lawsuit seeks to answer that question.
Star Restaurant survives ADA lawsuit
Hanford Sentinel
Hanford’s historic Star Restaurant has settled a recent lawsuit alleging the business didn’t comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.