Employment Law - C233 TOPIC 7
If the disabled person's condition constitutes a direct threat to the safety of others at work, he or she is considered not qualified for the job.
True Employers are free to lawfully discriminate against an employee whose medical condition poses a threat to others. However, a reasonable accommodation must still be sought.
If the accommodation would be highly disruptive to the workplace, as in the case of a significant shift of duties to another employee or a diminution of service or performance by other workers, there may be a claim of undue hardship.
True Employers have a legitimate interest in making sure work gets done, and if an accommodation has a substantially negative effect on that, it may be an "undue hardship."
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires federal information and technology platforms to be accessible to people with disabilities, including employees and the public.
True In other words, a technology system provided in a visual format would also have to be provided in audio, or other format, for a disabled federal employee or for public use.
An employer may discriminate in employment on qualifications.
True True: Consequently, a disabled person must be qualified to carry out the essential functions of the job, before the protections of the ADA may be invoked.
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 expanded previous federal responsibilities for research and training programs with respect to disabled persons.
True True: The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 governs the authorization of grants to states for vocational rehabilitation services to those with severe disabilities, and it expanded previous federal responsibilities for research and training programs with respect to disabled persons.
Contrary to some misconceptions, reasonable accommodation under the ADA does not require:
an employer to lower job standards The ADA does not require an employer to lower job standards, alter production goals, modify the essential job functions for a disabled employee, change a job from full to part-time, exclude an employee from discipline procedures, or create a new job altogether.
Disabled persons in the United States are not very common, with less than 5% of the population being afflicted with a disability.
False According to the 2010 Census data, about nineteen percent of the U.S. population has a disability.
Only federal contractors doing over $50,000 in business have to take affirmative action to hire qualified disabled persons.
False False: Federal government and federal contractors doing over $10,000 in business have to take affirmative action to hire qualified disabled persons.
Disabled persons have a higher employment rate than non-disabled persons.
False Only 41 percent of disabled persons between the ages of 21 and 64 were working at a job, while 79 percent of non-disabled persons were working.
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in programs conducted by:
Federal agencies Those receiving federal assistance Federal contractors
The EEOC expanded its guideline's definition of impairment to include:
"[a]ny physiological disorder or condition affecting one or more of the following body systems: neurological, musculoskeletal, special sense organs, respiratory (including speech organs), cardiovascular, reproductive, digestive, genitourinary, hemic and lymphatic, skin, and endocrine, or any mental or psychological disorder."
Which of the following definitions was not adopted by the ADA from the Rehabilitation Act's definition of a disability?
Being able to pass the national impairment proof test The Rehabilitation Act defines a disability as: (1) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; or (2) a record of such impairment; or (3) being perceived as having such an impairment.
The employer must show how the ___________ will create an undue hardship and may not merely speculate on the issue.
Actual costs of accommodating
Which of the following is not a reasonable accommodation?
Creating privacy barriers
Which of the following options is not considered to be a disability?
Gender Identity The ADAAA provides that sexual orientation, gender identity, and compulsive gambling are not disabilities.
Part of the increase in disability discrimination complaints to the EEOC is caused by:
The slowness of employers to modify negative stereotypical thinking about disabled employees
What constitutes undue hardship is, just like the accommodation analysis itself, a fact-intensive inquiry and depends upon many factors, including
the size and nature of the business, the extent and cost of the accommodation, and the overall resources of the business. Generally, accommodations that present an undue hardship are those that are expensive, disruptive, wide-ranging in significance, or require an alteration of the fundamental structure of a business operation
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, it is illegal for a company with ____ or more employees to discriminate in employment against qualified persons with disabilities.
15 From the text, "Under the ADA, it became illegal for any firm with 25 (now 15) or more employees to discriminate in employment against a qualified person with a disability."
The Rehabilitation act of 1973 defines an "individual with a disability" as:
A person who has a physical impairment A person with a mental impairment which substantially limits one or more of his or her major life activities A disabled person with a record of such impairment and/or perceived as having such an impairment.
The ADA adopted the Rehabilitation Act's definition of a disability as:
A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities A record of such impairment Being perceived as having such an impairment
Traditional views of disabled people have been changing. In 1973, the city of Chicago repealed a law created in the 1880's that forbade disabled people who were diseased, maimed, or unsightly from:
Appearing in public From the text, "The city of Chicago, as late as 1973, repealed an 1880's law that forbade a person who was diseased, maimed, or unsightly from appearing in public."
How many life activities must an impairment limit to be considered a disability?
At least one
The effect of the Americans with Disabilities Act was to standardize and nationalize employment protections for the qualified disabled employee in the _________ sector.
Both public and private From the text, "The effect of the ADA was to standardize and nationalize employment protections for the qualified disabled employee in both the public and private sector and to back up those protections with the enforcement power of the EEOC."
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the largest claim for disability comes from:
Difficulty walking or climbing stairs Over 30 million Americans have a difficult time walking or climbing stairs.
The independent living movement was instrumental in pushing for federal legislation to protect disabled persons from:
Employment discrimination From the text, "To combat injustices, there arose what has become known as the independent living movement, which has worked to take disabled persons out of isolation and institutions and place them squarely in the mainstream community of school and employment."
Determining what constitutes the ________, and not _______, functions of the job is an important task for an employer to undertake for both practical and risk management considerations.
Essential : marginal
An employer, before advertising a job and beginning the process of external hiring or internal promotion, should create a job description which details the ______ and _______ functions of the job position.
Essential and marginal "The ADA does not require employers to engage in empirical job function analysis. However, from an efficiency and risk management point of view, employers should be able to defend an interpretation of essential job function. Therefore, an employer, before advertising a job and beginning the process of external hiring or internal promotion, should create a job description that details the essential and marginal functions of the job position."
From a risk management point of view, an employer should be able to defend an interpretation of:
Essential job functions
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973:
Governs the authorization of grants to states for vocational rehabilitation services to those with severe disabilities Expanded previous federal responsibilities for research for disabled persons Expanded training programs with respect to disabled persons
A qualified individual is one who:
Has the skills, talents, education, and other abilities necessary to carry out the essential functions of the job
Which of the following is not evidence of a task being essential?
High salary expectations for a specific task to be completed Evidence of whether a particular task is essential may be found in: 1) formal job descriptions prepared before the job is announced and filled; 2) the percentage of time spent on the job performing a function; 3) the consequences of the task not being done; 4) the elements of a job deemed essential in a collective bargaining agreement; 5) work and educational experience required to undertake the task; and 6) work experience necessary.
The ADA did not initially define the terms _______ or _______. This created some difficulty for employers and courts alike in determining the parameters of the statute.
Impairment : major life activity From the text, "The ADA did not initially define the terms "impairment" or "major life activity." This created some difficulty for employers and courts alike in determining the parameters of the statute."
Across the United States there has been a(n) _________ in workplace disability discrimination claims.
Increase In recent years there has been almost a 17% increase in disability discrimination claims.
What is the name of the movement which has worked to take disabled persons out of isolation and institutions and place them squarely in the mainstream community of school and employment?
Independent living movement
The EEOC reports that the majority of accommodations made by employers are:
Nominal From the text, "The EEOC reports that 30 percent of accommodations cost nothing, while almost 20 percent cost the employer under $50, and 50 percent involve expenses of $500 or less. Even for the smallest employer, these expenses are nominal."
The ADAAA requires that the determination of whether an employee has a disability be ___________ and _____________.
Particularly simple and straightforward : not require extensive analysis
Disabilities that are covered by the ADAAA are:
Permanent or temporary
A covered employer must modify or adjust a job application process, work environment, job duties, or conditions or physical facilities to enable an otherwise qualified disabled employee to perform the essential function of a job. This is known as:
Reasonable accommodation
The ADA required employers to take affirmative steps to provide ________ for qualified disabled workers, absent undue hardship.
Reasonable accommodations From the text, "like the Rehabilitation Act, the ADA required employers take affirmative steps to provide reasonable accommodation for qualified disabled workers, absent undue hardship."
What factors drove Congress to pass the ADA Amendments Act?
Response to several United States Supreme Court cases that narrowly construed the definition of disability
What did Congress intend employers to do before claiming undue hardship?
Seek external government funding From the text, "Congress intended that an employer seek external government funding, apply for tax incentives, and see if the disabled employee could bear some of the accommodation costs before claiming undue hardship."
Employers have wide latitude in disregarding usual company policy in favor of the disabled employee without running afoul of other anti-discrimination statutes, but generally may not make exceptions to:
Seniority rules or collective bargaining agreements
The EEOC provides the following example: An employee with breast cancer is undergoing chemotherapy. As a consequence of the treatment, the employee is subject to fatigue and finds it difficult to keep up with her regular workload. So that she may focus her reduced energy on performing her essential functions, the employer transfers three of her marginal functions to another employee for the duration of the chemotherapy treatments. The second employee is unhappy at being given extra assignments, but the employer determines that the employee can absorb the new assignments with little effect on his ability to perform his own assignments in a timely manner. Which of the following is true?
Since the employer cannot show significant disruption to its operation, there is no undue hardship.
What factors are considered when determining undue hardship?
Size and nature of the business Extent and cost of the accommodation The overall resources of the business
EMPLOYER DISABILITY ACCOMMODATION PROTOCOL
Step 1 - EMPLOYEE REQUEST FOR, OR EMPLOYER IDENTIFICATION OF, NEED FOR ACCOMMODATION Step 2 - IDENTIFICATION OF BARRIERS TO PERFORMANCE OF ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS Step 3 - COLLABORATIVE IDENTIFICATION OF POSSIBLE ACCOMMODATIONS TO OVERCOME BARRIERS Step 4 - ASSESSMENT OF THE REASONABLENESS OF NECESSARY ACCOMMODATION Step 5 - IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ACCOMMODATION Step 6 - CONTINUOUS EVALUATION AND ASSESSMENT OF THE ACCOMMODATION
In School Board of Nassau v. Arline, a school board fired a school teacher who had recently recovered from a documented third bout of tuberculosis for fear that the disease would return and pose a risk to school children. Which of the following statements is true?
The courts held that the teacher was protected under The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 because allowing discrimination based on the contagious effects of a physical impairment would be inconsistent with the basic purpose of the Act
Which group has the duty to seek accommodations if needed?
The employee
Which of the following is not a step in determining what accommodations are required for a job?
The employee determines which accommodation is reasonable and effective
Under the ADA , if an employer is considering two qualified applicants for a job, one disabled and the other not, then:
The employer will have violated the ADA if he/she chooses not to hire the disabled person because of the disability or the requirement that an accommodation be made.
The calculation of whether a task is essential to a job is relative to:
The firm and the job
What is the ADA's definition of an essential function?
The fundamental duties of the employment position the individual with a disability holds or desires
The primary object of attention in cases brought under the ADA should be whether covered entities have complied with their obligations and whether discrimination has occurred, not whether:
The individual meets the definition of disability From the text, "The primary object of attention in cases brought under the ADA should be whether covered entities have complied with their obligations and whether discrimination has occurred, not whether the individual meets the definition of disability."
A job function may be considered essential for any of several reasons, including:
The position exists to perform the function There are a limited number of workers among whom the function may be distributed
The Rehabilitation Act requires all employers to make reasonable accommodations for employees unless the accommodation would cause:
Undue hardship The text clarifies that an employer would not need to make an accommodation if it would require "an undue hardship based upon business needs and cost."
The law prohibits the employer from making ________ decisions about what job functions a disabled employee may not be able to undertake.
Unilateral Unilateral, meaning individual or one-sided
An employer can refuse to implement what would otherwise be a reasonable accommodation:
When it would cause undue hardship Under the ADA, an employer may refuse to implement what would otherwise be a reasonable accommodation if it represents an undue hardship to the business.
Which of the following is considered a "major life activity" by the EEOC and the Supreme Court's definition?
walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, working, learning, thinking, standing, lifting, caring for oneself, interacting with others, and sexual reproduction