BC, workplace accommodations, EEO/discrimination, etc

EEOC Releases Fiscal Year 2018 Enforcement and Litigation Data

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released data on the numbers and types of complaints filed with the agency, as well as resolutions and outcomes achieved in fiscal year 2018. 24,605 complaints were filed alleging disability discrimination, and more than $136 million in benefits obtained for aggrieved individuals.

https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/4-10-19.cfm

"Corizon Health / Corizon LLC to Pay $950,000 to Settle Nationwide EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit"

Corizon Health Inc. and Corizon LLC have agreed to pay $950,000 and provide other relief to settle a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employ­ment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The Corizon companies provide health care in jails and corrections facilities across the country.

According to the EEOC, Corizon violated the ADA by refusing to accommodate employees with disabilities, subjecting employees to a hostile work environment due to their disabilities and/or need for accommodation, retaliating against some employees who engaged in protected activity, and terminating employees who had disabilities or needed accommodations.

In addition to the monetary relief for 23 individuals, the companies will also modify their policies and practices to ensure that employees with disabilities are afforded reasonable accommodations, provide annual training to all their employees, and hire a monitor to ensure compliance.

Elizabeth Cadle, district director of the EEOC's Phoenix District Office, said, "Employers should understand that policies which require an employee to be 100% or without any medical restric­tions violate the ADA because they don't leave room for reasonable accommodations."

Reported at:

https://www.adainfo.org/e-bulletin/e-bulletin-may-28-2019 (under ADA News)

This was also an EEOC press release:

https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/5-13-19b.cfm

Many Are Replacing Disability Checks With Paychecks

for the first time in decades, the disability rolls are shrinking. More people with disabilities are returning to work and holding on to their jobs. With unemployment at a nearly 50-year low, companies are struggling to find workers. And that means people who had trouble finding a job in the past are suddenly in demand. That includes people with disabilities.

https://www.npr.org/2019/05/22/723757962/many-are-replacing-disability-checks-with-paychecks

Virginia Court: Worker Fired After Cancer Diagnosis May Proceed with ADA Case

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia denied an employer's motion to dismiss the case of Donaldson v Trae-Fuels, LLC.

The employer argued for dismissal on the grounds that the plaintiff, who had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, did not have a disability as defined by the ADA. The court found the argument "unpersuasive."

Additionally, the court said the plaintiff "plausibly allege[d] that the defendants terminated his employment because of his cancer diagnosis." According to the complaint, before his diagnosis, the plaintiff never received any negative feedback or complaints about his work. However, upon learning of his diagnosis, his supervisors immediately began to question his ability to work, and made several negative comments about his illness. He was fired a couple of months after he began chemotherapy, despite having maintained a full work schedule while undergoing treatment.

http://www.vawd.uscourts.gov/opinions/conrad/donaldsontraefuelsopor.pdf

Aging and Disability Study

Researchers are seeking adults with physical disabilities to participate in this study to learn more about the chronic health conditions people living with long-term disabilities experience as they age. Participants will be asked to complete three surveys over two years, online or by phone, and will be compensated for their time.

https://redcap.wustl.edu/redcap/srvrs/prod_v3_1_0_001/redcap/surveys/?s=XAK8R9KNYC

Reasonable Accommodations Can Make Working Through Cancer Treatment Easier

Many patients with cancer continue to work through treatment.

being at work while facing cancer can be challenging.

Employees should know their rights

{The} cost of reasonable accommodations {is generally low}.

https://www.curetoday.com/articles/reasonable-accommodations-can-make-working-through-cancer-treatment-easier

How to Disclose a Disability to Your Employer (and Whether You Should)

If you, like thousands of others, live with a visible or invisible disability, here's what you need to know if you want to tell your employer.

The Americans with Disabilities Act forbids employers from discriminating against applicants or employees on the basis of disability, but the gap between the letter and application of the law can swallow people whole....The A.D.A. protects people from losing their position because of disability, but it doesn't prevent microaggressions or water cooler chatter that can turn toxic.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/10/smarter-living/disclose-disability-work-employer-rights.html?auth=login-email&login=email

{This NYT article appears to require sign in. NYT usually allows a limited number of views per month without subscription.}

Cannabis Legalization and Employee Drug Testing: A Tricky Combination

with more states working to decriminalize or legalize marijuana use, routine workplace drug screening deserves a closer look. Last summer, Quest Diagnostics reported that the number of American workers and job applicants testing positive for drugs reached a 14-year high, with positive screens for marijuana at the top of the pile.

https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/cannabis-legalization-and-employee-drug-36750/

Hospital fires doctor for having cancer

Dismissed George Washington resident with cancer sues school, alleging discrimination

The doctor fired for having cancer speaks up

A former resident at George Washington University Hospital sued the university {in 2016}, alleging that she was dismissed because she had cancer.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/dismissed-george-washington-resident-with-cancer-sues-hospital-alleging-discrimination/2016/08/30/a266371e-696e-11e6-8225-fbb8a6fc65bc_story.html

https://www.idealmedicalcare.org/hospital-fires-doctor-for-having-cancer/

https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2017/02/doctor-fired-cancer-speaks.html?pop=0&ba=1&xid=fb-md-cbtm-onc-pbav&fbclid=IwAR3sww0nu3X-qroYxdS37anI45FnJAT-hR-7k5gpSUvWHnjUb1sn504Jmd8

{Note: material is from 2016, 2017. Wa Po allows a limited number of reads per month without subscription.}

Employer's maximum leave policy violated ADA, EEOC says

• A Delaware company that provides services to correctional facilities and other state institutions will pay $550,000 to settle a disability bias lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced.
• Connections CSP allegedly fired employees with disabilities who needed additional unpaid leave beyond the 12 weeks provided by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). It also, according to EEOC, failed to provide other requested reasonable accommodations, such as reassignment to vacant positions, that would have allowed these workers to stay on the job. Instead, it allegedly placed them on FMLA leave and terminated them when their leaves expired.
• In addition to the monetary relief, which will be distributed to five former employees, the three-year consent decree resolving the suit requires Connections to implement a new reasonable accommodation policy; provide training on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), its reasonable accommodation policy and other federal anti-discrimination laws; and post a notice regarding the settlement.

Maryland Court Holds that Employers Must Reassign Employees as a Disability Accommodation

For a number of years, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") has taken the position that, pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"), an employer's obligation to provide a reasonable accommodation requires the employer to reassign disabled employees to an open position without requiring them to compete for the job. This position has been hotly contested and courts across the country have reached differing conclusions. Until recently, no court in Maryland had opined on this issue. The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland agreed with the EEOC and held last week that the ADA does in fact require employers to provide noncompetitive reassignment as a reasonable accommodation. EEOC v. Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company d/b/a M&T Bank, No. CV ELH-16-3180, 2019 WL 4305365 (D. Md. Sept. 10, 2019).

https://www.milesstockbridge.com/labor-employment-...

"D.C. Sees Latest Test Case for Employees Seeking 'Reasonable Accommodation' for Off-Duty Medical Marijuana Use"

This article examines a new D.C. law providing employment protections to D.C. government employees who are lawfully enrolled in a medical marijuana program. It also highlights the latest in a recent trend of employees seeking to utilize state or local anti-discrimination laws as a means of requiring their employers to provide "reasonable accommodation" of their off-duty medical marijuana use, as it remains an "illegal drug" under the Controlled Substance Act (CSA).

https://www.blunttruthlaw.com/category/medical-mar...

National Conference of State Legislatures Magazine Feature on Employment and Disability

As part of its collaboration with the State Exchange on Employment & Disability (SEED), the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) recently published a feature in the September/October 2019 issue of State Legislatures Magazine on policies that help workers stay-at-work/return-to-work. The article, "Staying in the Game: With Record Low Unemployment, Lawmakers Want to Help Injured and Ill Workers Get Back on the Job Quickly," highlights examples of policies and programs states are implementing to help ill and injured workers return to the workforce, as well as federal efforts such as the RETAIN Demonstration Projects.

http://www.ncsl.org/research/labor-and-employment/...

{This article deals mostly with injured workers returning to work, but others may find aspects valuable.}

"People with Disability Face Barriers to Basic Health Care"

This article examines the ways in which a lack of accessible medical equipment – such as exam tables, scales and mammography machines – means that people with physical disability struggle to get adequate health care.

https://www.usnews.com/news/healthiest-communities...

{Our "abilities" may change as we navigate the cancer experience. This article discuses how physical disability may impact access to care.}

"New Poll: Majority of Voters Have Disability Connections"

This report from RespectAbility and Greenberg Quinlan Rosner (GQR) provides the results of a study on voters and disability. Key findings show that the disability community represents half the country; the disability community is politically contested; and, this community's agenda has not been sufficiently addressed by candidates for public office.

https://www.respectability.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/RespectAbility-survey-memo-FQ-100119.pdf

{Cancer is a disability under the ADA. Thanks to the Mid-Atlantic ADA Center for these links.}