Return to Work Plans are usually created and used in conjunction with Worker’s Comp injuries and focus on getting a recovering employee back to work as soon as practical. But they can end up connected to ADA issues following serious injuries, which can cause problems for a business if the … Read More
As more people are using service and emotional support animals, it is getting trickier for business owners to know how to handle them. Service animals must generally be accommodated in all areas where members of the public are allowed to go, while emotional support dogs don’t have to be. So … Read More
Employers have a responsibility to be proactive when they become aware of a problem in their workplace. The highest-profile examples center around harassment and sex discrimination, but it applies to disabilities too. When an employer becomes aware that an employee has – or may have – a disability, they need … Read More
When you sit down to write up job descriptions, the first challenge is to figure out what the “essential functions” of the job are. These come in handy for hiring, especially if you have to choose between candidates with differing qualifications, and during discussions about reasonable accommodations with an employee … Read More
The fun part about writing job descriptions – ok, the part that most people focus on – is the list of tasks that an employee is responsible for: answering phones, accounts payable, supervising, scheduling, etc. These are the obvious parts of a job, but there is more to it than … Read More
One of the lesser-known aspects of the ADA is that it makes it illegal to discriminate against someone because they “associate” with someone with a disability. According to the EEOC: The ADA prohibits discrimination based on relationship or association in order to protect individuals from actions based on unfounded assumptions … Read More
Pregnancy isn’t considered a disability in the same way that cancer or MS are, but the federal government recognizes that pregnant women can be discriminated against in similar ways and has taken steps to rectify this. Under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, pregnant women are entitled to accommodations just as disabled … Read More
Under both the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) and the FMLA (Family Medical Leave Act), an employer can ask for medical certification of a disability or of the need for leave. For a disability, be sure that you tailor the request for information to the specific duties of the job … Read More
If an employee comes to you and says they have a disability, your first responsibility as an employer is to talk to them about it; this is the “interactive process” required by the ADAAA. Don’t panic or freeze up; disabilities are seldom a workplace crisis (unless you refuse to deal … Read More
Why does a company need job descriptions? There are two main reasons, plus one applicable to companies certified in ISO-9001 and similar QMS programs. The most urgent reason is legal, as a protection against discrimination claims; the day-to-day reason is that it makes hiring and managing employees easier; the QMS … Read More