Blog Posts | Jackson Lewis

Disability Access Litigation and ComplianceBlog Posts

Yet Another Multi-Million Dollar ADA Settlement for Alleged “Inflexible Leave” Policy Add another multi-million dollar settlement notch to the EEOC’s “inflexible leave” belt. The EEOC announced that national trucking company Interstate Distributor Company will pay $4.85 million to resolve a nationwide class disability discrimination lawsuit the EEOC had brought against Interstate. The lawsuit alleged that Interstate had a policy of terminating employees who needed more than … Continue reading Yet Another Multi-Million Dollar ADA Settlement for Alleged “Inflexible Leave” Policy November 11, 2012	Festival Provides “Honest Belief” Evidence to Defeat FMLA Retaliation Claim, Yet Again First Oktoberfest, now Pulaski Days. Recall our post about an employee on FMLA who was terminated after his employer learned about his Oktoberfest festival jaunt. The Sixth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the employer on the plaintiff’s FMLA retaliation claim, holding that, based on the plaintiff’s actions at the festival, the employer had an “honest belief” that the employee … Continue reading Festival Provides “Honest Belief” Evidence to Defeat FMLA Retaliation Claim, Yet Again November 10, 2012	Leave Sharing Programs and Other Steps Employers Can Take to Assist Employees Affected by Hurricane Sandy When tragic events like Hurricane Sandy occur, many companies try to find ways to assist affected individuals, including the company’s employees and their families. "Leave sharing" programs, in which employees donate paid leave to other employees who need to miss work due to the storm or disaster, often become popular. Many companies are surprised to learn that there … Continue reading Leave Sharing Programs and Other Steps Employers Can Take to Assist Employees Affected by Hurricane Sandy November 5, 2012
Who Cares? A Daughter Who Goes to Vegas with Her Terminally Ill Mom Cares What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, usually, but not in this case. What happened in Vegas was scrutinized because the plaintiff claimed that her absences for her trip there were protected by the FMLA because she was “caring for” her mother on her mom’s end-of-life trip. A charitable organization which grants wishes to persons with … Continue reading Who Cares? A Daughter Who Goes to Vegas with Her Terminally Ill Mom Cares October 8, 2012	Seventh Circuit Tips Balance on ADA’s Accommodation of Last Resort When an employee cannot perform the essential functions of his or her position, with or without an accommodation due to a disability, an employer must consider “the accommodation of last resort”—transfer to a vacant lateral or lower position for which the employee is qualified. Circuit courts had been evenly divided on whether an individual with … Continue reading Seventh Circuit Tips Balance on ADA’s Accommodation of Last Resort September 23, 2012	Adverse Impact on Co-Workers of a Requested Accommodation under ADA Relevant in Determining Essential Functions We posted recently about an Eighth Circuit decision in which the court held that rotating shifts was an essential function because “[i]f [plaintiff] were switched to a straight day shift and not required to work the rotating shift, then other Resource Coordinators would have to work more night and weekend shifts.” Another court has … Continue reading Adverse Impact on Co-Workers of a Requested Accommodation under ADA Relevant in Determining Essential Functions September 23, 2012
Plaintiff With Many Chemical and Other Sensitivities Not Qualified Under Rehab Act A plaintiff with chemical or other sensitivities alleging disability discrimination is not unusual. The typical claim is that such a plaintiff, despite such sensitivities, is a qualified individual with a disability and the employer failed to accommodate those sensitivities. The pro se plaintiff in an Eleventh Circuit case making that claim, a nurse in a … Continue reading Plaintiff With Many Chemical and Other Sensitivities Not Qualified Under Rehab Act September 11, 2012	Rotating Shifts is Essential Job Function, Citing Impact on Co-Workers as Well as Business Justification Recall our post concerning the claims of the acrophobic bridge worker and incontinent court reporter that rotating through job assignments was not an essential function of their jobs. Now comes a “Resource Coordinator” seeking a straight day shift as an accommodation to her disability and claims that working rotating shifts is not an essential function … Continue reading Rotating Shifts is Essential Job Function, Citing Impact on Co-Workers as Well as Business Justification September 4, 2012	Court Issues Leave Limits Guidance: Will Employee Be Able to Perform Essential Functions on an Estimated Date Within 6 Months? The question frustrating employers for decades remains: how much leave, beyond FMLA and employer policies, must an employer give a disabled employee as a reasonable accommodation under the ADA? More than a year after the EEOC hosted a public hearing on this topic, raising hopes that guidance may be forthcoming, only to have those hopes dampened … Continue reading Court Issues Leave Limits Guidance: Will Employee Be Able to Perform Essential Functions on an Estimated Date Within 6 Months? September 4, 2012
Reminder to Philadelphia Employers: You May Have to Provide Your Employees with Paid Sick Leave As of July 1, 2012, several employers in Philadelphia now have to provide their employees with paid sick leave. Pursuant to an amendment to Chapter 17-1300 of the Philadelphia Code, titled “Philadelphia 21st Century Minimum Wage and Benefits Standard,” certain entities providing services to, or receiving financial aid from, the City of Philadelphia must provide … Continue reading Reminder to Philadelphia Employers: You May Have to Provide Your Employees with Paid Sick Leave August 31, 2012

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