The Americans With Disabilities Act: An Overview for Employees

July 12, 2012 (Press-News.org) Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, it is illegal for employers to discriminate against workers or job applicants because of a disability. This means an employer cannot treat a qualified individual with a disability less favorably in any aspect of employment, including hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, layoffs, training, fringe benefits or any other term or condition of employment.

Anyone with a disability is protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act. Under the terms of the Act, a person with a disability is someone who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, or someone who has a record of having such an impairment in the past. The Act also prohibits discrimination against people who do not have a disability themselves, but have some relationship to a person with a disability -- for instance, an employer cannot discriminate against a worker because her husband suffers from a disability.

Of course, the ADA prohibits employers from making major employment decisions on the basis of a disability. But it also operates in more subtle ways. While simple teasing, offhand comments or minor isolated instances of harassment are not unlawful, harassment that is so frequent or severe that it creates a hostile work environment is prohibited by the ADA (an example of harassment may include making offensive comments about a person's disability).

The ADA not only tells employers what they cannot do in terms of their treatment of disabled workers, it also tells them what they must do in order to accommodate a disabled employee. Unless it would cause them undue hardship (meaning it would be too difficult or prohibitively expensive), an employer must provide reasonable accommodation to an employee or applicant with a disability.

A reasonable accommodation is aimed at helping the disabled person in the performance of his or her duties or in enjoying the full benefits and privileges of employment. A reasonable accommodation could be a change to the physical environment of the workplace, or a modification to the way in which things are done. Installing a wheelchair ramp, modifying works schedules so an employee may leave periodically to receive medical treatments or providing someone to read information posted on a bulletin board to a blind employee would all be examples of things that would normally be considered a reasonable accommodation.

When an employer violates the ADA, either through discrimination or by failure to provide a reasonable accommodation, an aggrieved employee or prospective employee has legal remedies at his or her disposal. A lawsuit can provide an equitable solution -- like forcing an employer to make a reasonable accommodation or to make up for the ill effects of past discrimination -- or in some instances might even result in an award of monetary damages.

If you feel like you may have been discriminated against because of a disability, or are getting nowhere with requests for a reasonable disability accommodation, you need legal counsel. Get in touch with a disability discrimination lawyer today to learn more about your rights and remedies.

Article provided by Zatuchni & Associates, Attorneys at Law
Visit us at www.zatuchniassociates.com