Whatever the actual reason for firing an employee, the written explanation becomes evidence. A Mississippi restaurant is about to find out what that means. TL;DR: The EEOC has sued a Mississippi restaurant under the Americans with Disabilities Act, alleging it fired an employee with a seizure condition just days after…
Employers that rely on arbitration agreements should pay attention to a recent Sixth Circuit decision. One plausible sexual-harassment claim can keep an entire lawsuit in court—even claims that would otherwise go to arbitration. TL;DR: The Sixth Circuit held that when a complaint plausibly alleges a sexual-harassment dispute, the Ending…
Sometimes the accommodation request itself tells the whole story. In a recent Fourth Circuit Rehabilitation Act decision, a federal air marshal asked to stay in a ground-based role permanently after medical conditions prevented her from flying. But in doing so, she also acknowledged that she could not perform the…
At the British Academy Film Awards – better known as the BAFTAs, the U.K.’s version of the Oscars – a man with Tourette’s Syndrome interrupted the ceremony while actors Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presenting an award, shouting a racial slur. That public moment raises a workplace question:…
Remote work policies are tightening. But the Americans with Disabilities Act did not disappear when companies decided the office feels collaborative again. Last week, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued federal-sector guidance on telework accommodations for employees with disabilities. Although written for federal agencies under the Rehabilitation Act,…
When employees say, “You helped him when he was injured but refused to help me,” it sounds like discrimination. It also sounds like a failure-to-accommodate dispute. A recent Ninth Circuit decision shows why that framing matters, and why getting it wrong can sink the case before it ever reaches a…
Hiring can feel like a checklist: background check, drug test, start date. But when an applicant raises a disability-related issue, those boxes stop being routine, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) starts asking questions. TL;DR: An applicant disclosed prescription medications that could affect a required drug test and…
Deciding too early that accommodation is impossible can shape everything that follows. This case shows why courts often let juries sort it out. In a recent ADA decision from the Northern District of Illinois, an employer decided an injured employee could not return as a bus operator under her medical…
A single recruiting phone call. No application. No interview. And yet, enough evidence for a federal judge to let an ADA hiring case move forward. TL;DR: A federal court in North Carolina refused to throw out an ADA hiring case brought by the EEOC after a recruiter allegedly shut down…
When an employee’s health takes a turn, the instinct is to be flexible. The legal risk is assuming flexibility means you cannot enforce expectations. TL;DR: The Eleventh Circuit affirmed summary judgment for a county employer that ended a probationary employee’s employment after documenting performance problems, even though the employee…