Letter of Findings: University of California at Berkeley | PDF
Obesity Claim Under ADA Carries No Weight With Justices
Bloomberg BNA
The U.S. Supreme Court Oct. 3 declined to review a rejected job applicant’s claim that morbid obesity should be covered as an impairment under the Americans with Disabilities Act ( Morriss v. BNSF Ry. Co., U.S., No. 16-233, cert. denied 10/3/16 ).
EEOC Sues Faurecia Automotive For Disability Discrimination
Faurecia Automotive Seating, LLC, the sixth largest international automotive parts manufacturer in the world, violated federal law by disqualifying applicants from employment because they were disabled, regarded as disabled, have a record of a disability, and/or because of their association with an individual who has a disability, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed on September 30, 2016.
EEOC's suit charged that Faurecia violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to hire Neda Sykes-Travis and a class of 10 other claimants, who were formerly employed by Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI) when it relied on their record of sick leave or FMLA leave to disqualify them.
EEOC Sues Work Services, Inc. For Disability Discrimination
JD Supra
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced that it has filed a disability discrimination lawsuit against Work Services, Inc., an employer of six intellectually and developmentally disabled former employees. Work Services, Inc., which is located in Newberry, S.C., contracts its employees to work the production line at a Newberry-based turkey processing plant.
7-Eleven Sued By EEOC for Disability Discrimination
The National Law Review
Oklahoma Chain Unlawfully Denied Reasonable Accommodations to Workers with Disabilities and Fired Them, Federal Agency Charges
ST. LOUIS - Brown-Thompson General Partnership, dba 7-Eleven, a chain of Oklahoma convenience stores, violated federal law when it failed to provide reasonable accommodations to workers with disabilities at the company's Oklahoma City warehouse and distribution center, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed on Friday, September 30, 2016.
According to EEOC's suit, Casey Crothers worked as a stocker at the distribution center. When his doctor placed him on short-term work restrictions due to a disability, Crothers asked for temporary transfer to a position that met his restrictions. 7-Eleven told Crothers that because his restrictions were not related to an on-the-job injury, the company was not required to accommodate him. 7-Eleven then fired Crothers because he was going to miss more than three days of work. EEOC alleges 7-Eleven similarly failed to provide reasonable accommodations to other workers, denying temporary light or modified duty and terminating employees with disabilities who missed more than three days of work if they were not eligible for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act.
Such alleged conduct violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma (EEOC v. Brown-Thompson General Partnership d/b/a 7-Eleven Stores, Case No. 5:16-cv-01142-R) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The agency seeks back pay and compensatory and punitive damages, along with injunctive relief to prevent and address any future disability discrimination.
"While the Family and Medical Leave Act requires certain employers to provide leave to some employees, it is not the only law that requires leave," said James R. Neely, Jr., director of EEOC's St. Louis District Office. "Where leave is a reasonable accommodation for a medical condition covered by the ADA, an employer must provide it."
Andrea G. Baran, regional attorney for EEOC's St. Louis District, said, "One of the primary goals of the ADA is to keep people with disabilities working. When accommodations are reasonable - such as allowing an employee to temporarily work in an available job that meets the employee's restrictions or allowing the worker additional time off - and do not pose an undue hardship on the employer, the law requires that the employer provide the accommodation."
According to its website, 7-Eleven operates over 110 locations across Central Oklahoma and is one of the state's leading gasoline and convenience products retailers.
Granite Mesa Health Center Sued By EEOC for Disability Discrimination and Retaliation
JD Supra
A nursing home violated federal law by discharging an employee who hesitated when ordered to provide his HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) test results as a condition of his continued employment, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.
According to the lawsuit, Granite Mesa Health Center, Ltd. unlawfully required a medical examination of a certified nurse assistant (CNA) immediately after he disclosed that he had tested as HIV-positive. The employee was discharged because of his HIV-positive status and in retaliation for asserting his rights under the ADA when he requested a copy of the written policy requiring disclosure of HIV test results and hesitated to submit the results.
Disabled file lawsuits in droves to force ADA compliance
Gainesville Sun
Litigators force ADA compliance, but often collect hefty legal fees, leaving some business owners wondering about the motivation behind the lawsuits.
RCSCW officials respond to ADA access complaint
YourWestValley.com
Sun City West resident James Devaney said no one at the various facilities had an answer for him on how he could get through doors.
So he filed a complaint with the Arizona State Attorney General’s Office citing the American with Disabilities Act over lack of access.
Repeat Plaintiffs, Non-Profits Target Businesses for ADA Compliance
Claims Journal
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III lawsuits are up 63 percent over 2015, according to law firm Seyfarth Shaw.
ADA Title III prohibits businesses open to the public from discriminating on the basis of disability. The Act applies to a variety of businesses and restaurants, including warehouses, movie theaters, schools, office buildings, day care facilities, doctors’ offices and any new construction of same must comply with the ADA construction standards.
EEOC Final Rules on Employer Wellness Programs Become Effective January 1, 2017
Lexology
Many employers offer health promotion and disease prevention strategies, often referred to as workplace wellness programs, not only to improve employee health and productivity, but also in an attempt to reign in health care insurance premiums. Employers seek to incentivize employees to participate in such programs, but cannot violate federal laws prohibiting discrimination based on health status, disability, and genetic information, or the dissemination of personal health information, to do so. To harmonize these competing interests, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently issued final rules (the "Final Rules") on how employer-provided wellness programs can simultaneously comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), as amended by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The Final Rules become effective in January 2017 and apply to all workplace wellness programs. However, the Final Rules are not always consistent with the ACA and HIPAA, leaving employers to face overlapping and conflicting federal regulations. This article summarizes the Final Rules in the context of the ACA and HIPAA, and provides advice for employers seeking to implement or maintain corporate wellness programs.