Consent Decree: City of Florence, Kentucky | Complaint
The Justice Department filed a proposed consent decree with the city of Florence, Kentucky, to resolve a pregnancy and disability discrimination lawsuit brought by the department under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
According to the department's complaint, Florence discriminated against two pregnant police officers by denying both officers' requests for light duty. The department alleges that Florence previously assigned light duty positions to employees who were temporarily unable to perform their regular job duties, regardless of why the employee needed light duty. In April 2013, within months of a police officer's pregnancy-related light duty request, Florence limited light duty to employees with on-the-job injuries. Florence also required that employees with non-work-related illnesses, injuries or conditions demonstrate that they had "no restrictions" before they could return to work.
Lawsuit: N.J. preschool expelled Down syndrome toddler because she was not toilet trained
Philly.com
A Moorestown preschool is facing allegations that it unlawfully expelled a 3-year-old girl with Down syndrome because she was not potty trained, according to a lawsuit filed by the New Jersey Attorney General's Office.
The lawsuit filed in Burlington County Superior Court alleges that Chesterbrook Academy, part of the national preschool chain - Nobel Learning Communities, Inc. - was discriminatory in 2015 when administrators expelled the child, but not others at the school who were not fully potty trained.
Finding the “Implicit” Accommodation Request
Lexology
It is common gospel that when a qualified disabled employee requests accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), both employer and employee must engage in an interactive dialogue to discuss the options. But what happens when an employee merely identifies a disability but never asks to be accommodated? In a recent decision, a sharply divided Eighth Circuit held that an employer who learns an employee cannot perform essential duties without accommodation due to a medical condition may need to treat the information as an “implicit” accommodation request. Such an implicit request can trigger the interactive process even though the employee never specifically asked to be accommodated.
Human Resource Executive Online
Despite a recent court ruling that finds an obese candidate who was not hired for a machinist job did not qualify for protection under the Americans with Disabilities Act, experts are still warning employers to be careful with their hiring practices so they don't get sued in the first place.
Reduce Potential ADA Liability by Making ATMs and Websites accessible
Lexology
Banks and credit unions are among the most recent targets of a wave of demand letters and lawsuits alleging violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (the “ADA”). The most common allegations concern inaccessible ATMs and websites, despite the fact that the ADA and its implementing regulations do not yet address website accessibility.
Title III of the ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals “on the basis of disability in the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages or accommodations of any place of public accommodation,” 42 U.S.C. § 12182(a), which includes banks and credit unions.
In 2010, the federal regulations implementing the ADA were revised, and expressly addressed ATMs for the first time. Banks and credit unions were given until March 2012 to become fully compliant, and most litigation targeted institutions that failed to comply by that date.
In contrast, there has been a surge in demand letters and lawsuits concerning website accessibility, even though there are currently no specific standards for websites under the ADA. The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) is in the process of developing regulations for website accessibility, but has announced it will not finalize these regulations until 2018 at the earliest. Even so, the DOJ has emphasized that businesses should make websites accessible to the disabled.
In light of the uncertain state of the law, implementing these ATM and website accessibility recommendations may reduce the risk for banks, even though such actions may not be legally required. See our recommended actions for website and ATM accessibility for more information.
Rehabilitation counselor accuses state agency of discrimination
West Virginia Record
A Huntington man is suing a state agency, alleging discrimination in failure to uphold Americans with Disabilities Act regulations.
Eugene M. Johnson filed a complaint Oct. 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia against the West Virginia Division of Rehabilitative Services, alleging violation of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
Lawsuit: Airline tells veteran with PTSD, 'You're not flying with THAT!'
The Sun Herald
An Army veteran who suffers from PTSD says in a federal lawsuit that American Airlines agents subjected her to two days of humiliation and stress when she tried to fly home from Kansas with her service dog, a Labrador retriever named Jake.
Lisa McCombs says she flew without incident to Manhattan, Kansas, on Oct. 25, 2015, but was stuck there for two days because American regional carrier Envoy refused to let her board a return flight with Jake, even though he was wearing his service vest and met criteria to board the plane.
2 Kentucky Police Officers Win Pregnancy Discrimination Case
New York Times
On Wednesday, the Justice Department announced that Florence had agreed to adopt a new policy allowing modified duty for pregnant employees, and to pay a total of $135,000 in damages and lawyers’ fees to Officer Trischler, 32, and Officer Riley, 31, though the settlement requires a federal judge’s approval. It was the first pregnancy discrimination case the Justice Department had intervened in since the Supreme Court handed down an important ruling on the subject last year.
5 local restaurants hit by disability lawsuits
WWMT-TV
Within the span of a few days, at least 5 different West Michigan restaurants were hit with lawsuits by one man, claiming the restaurants violated the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA).
Creating Opportunities For Deaf Employees
Huffington Post
“Where do you work?” “What do you do for a living?” In America, these are among the first questions a new acquaintance will ask us. This simple inquiry reflects the cultural emphasis placed on work and career choice in the modern world. But for many, this dreaded question serves as a reminder that even work is a privilege.
A recent survey conducted by TotalJobs, one of the UK’s leading jobs boards, revealed that more than half of d/Deaf and hard of hearing employees have faced discrimination at some point during their career because of their deafness. Approximately 25% of the survey’s respondents reported leaving a job as a result of discrimination. Just last year in the United States, deaf protestors marched on Washington D.C. to demand access to work, holding a banner that read “75% of Deaf are not working in USA.” What these numbers and actions suggest is that while companies are proudly touting diversity initiatives and proclaiming themselves to be “equal opportunity employers,” the reality does not match the narrative.
Do Unto Others: Treating Physician Patients
Medscape
In the popular imagination, medical residency is less a training program than a rite of passage. Those who successfully navigate this process are crowned physicians, with the ability to make life-and-death decisions. Those who don't succumb to the necessary culling process that ensures optimal patient care. The system, the theory goes, is a merciless but impartial judge.
Recently, stories have come to light that challenge this egalitarian notion. Some residents claim that they have been forced out of programs, not because of any deficiencies in their abilities or knowledge base, but rather because they experienced serious physical illnesses that required accommodation. Collectively, their stories paint a picture of an educational system that at best has serious flaws, and at worst is punitive and discriminatory.
Changing Marijuana Laws Light Up Employment Landscape
Bloomberg BNA
For those who find their drama in employment law, the changes in medical marijuana regulation are something of a potboiler. Employers need to adjust their policies to keep up, like homeowners mowing the grass frequently over the summer.
"Best practices vary from state to state because employer obligations are governed by state law, and perhaps even by municipal law," R. Scott Oswald, managing principal of The Employment Law Group, P.C., told Bloomberg BNA in an e-mail. "At the federal level, marijuana remains an illegal drug. The federal government generally doesn’t enforce this law in states that allow medical or recreational use—but until the federal law actually changes, employers aren’t required to accommodate users under the Americans with Disabilities Act, for example."
High school senior with ADHD challenges LHSAA eligibility rule
The Advocate
A north Louisiana high school senior and football player who repeated the sixth grade due to a medical condition claims the Louisiana High School Athletic Association violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by declaring him ineligible to take part in high school sports the rest of his senior year.