There have been a number of recent lawsuits alleging violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act in the workplace, ranging from a construction company allegedly refusing to hire workers who take medication to treat an opium addiction to a restaurant allegedly failing to accommodate and terminating a pregnant worker with sickle cell anemia.
In some cases, a company policy itself can run afoul of the ADA, as was the case for Union Pacific Railroad Co. The company allegedly didn’t allow a railroad conductor to return to work after dislocating his shoulder because of its “1% rule,” which restricted employees from holding safety-sensitive jobs if there were a 1% chance per year of “sudden incapacitation.” The court ruled against the railroad company, holding that the policy had a disparate impact on disabled employees because the company didn’t perform individualized assessments of workers.
Read on for a recap of recent court cases involving ADA claims.
