Reasonable Accommodation in the Work Place Under ADA
There may be as many as one thousand different disabilities that affect
over forty-three million Americans. Of all the laws and regulations governing
the treatment of those Americans the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the
most recent major law. It was passed in 1990 and although it is spelled out in
a technical ADA manual that is several hundred pages in length. Two of ADA's
two major sections, Titles II and III concern the operation of state and local
government and places of public accommodation. They require new public and
commercial facilities to be accessible to people with disabilities.
Modifications to existing facilities need to be made only if the cost is
"readily achievable" and does not cause an undue financial or administrative
burden. This essay will concentrate on Title I, the employment aspects of the
law. This section forbids employment discrimination against people with
disabilities who are able to perform the essential functions of the job with or
without reasonable accommodation.
This definition poses three main questions: Who is considered disabled?
What is an essential function of a job? What is considered Reasonable
Accommodation?
To be protected under the ADA an individual must have a physical or
mental impairment that substantially affects one or more major life activities.
The impairment may not be due to environmental, cultural, or economic
disadvantages. For example a person who cannot read because they have dyslexia
is considered disabled but a person who cannot read because they dropped out of
school is not. In addition persons who are perceived to be disabled are
protected by ADA. For example, if a person were to suffer a heart attack, when
he tries to return to work the boss might be scared the workload will be too
much and refuse to let him come back. The employer would be in violation of the
ADA because he perceives the employee as disabled and is discriminating based on
that perception. Two classes that are explicitly excluded from protection under
ADA are those individuals whose current use of alcohol or illegal drug is
affecting their job performance. However those who are recovering from their
former use of either alcohol or drugs are covered.
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...pped, must want the
changes and take some initiative to make it happen.
Works Cited
Bowers, Brent. "ADA Compliance comes cheap, a survey finds." Wall Street Journal
16 Sep. 1994 p(b)2 col 5.
Coelho, Tony. "A sad story, but not typical." The Washington Post 19 Feb. 1995
p(c)6.
Gomez-Mejia, Luis R., David B. Balkin, Robert L. Cardy. Managing Human Resources.
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1995.
Mullins, James A, Jr. "Use a Collaborative approach to reasonable
accommodation". HR Focus Feb. 1994 p16.
Renolds, Larry. "ADA Complaints are not what experts predicted." HR Focus Nov.
1993 p6.
Smolowe, Jill. "Noble Aims, Mixed Results" Time 31 July 1995.
"Some quick tips to make workspaces more flexible" HR Focus July 1992 p12-14.
Stamps, David "Just how scary is the ADA?" Training June 1995 p93.
"Who are the Disabled?: At work: A controversial law falls down on the job".
News Week 7 Nov. 1994.
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) protects individuals with disabilities from discrimination based upon their disability (Bennett-Alexander, 2001). The protection extends to discrimination in a broad range of activities, including public services, public accommodations and employment. The ADA's ban against disability discrimination applies to both private and public employers in the United States.
Over forty million Americans are disabled, whether it is a physical, sensory, cognitive, or mental disability. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act was signed into law in 1973. This law states that no handicapped individual shall be disqualified from partaking, be denied benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program receiving federal financial assistance. The foundation of the Section 504 is from the language of preceding civil rights laws that sheltered women and minorities. Section recognizes that history proves that humanity has treated people with disabilities as second-class citizens based on previous stereotypes. These types of attitudes have translated into policies based on paternalism. Section has acknowledged the discrimination of many children and adults. Senator Hubert Humphrey, who supported the Section, has said, “The time has come to firmly establish the right of disabled Americans to dignity of self-respect as equal and contributing members of society and to end the virtual isolation of millions of children and adults.” (Smith, 2001) In all, Section 504 has significantly altered the common and legal perception of civilization.
“National Minimum Drinking Age Act.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 21 April 2014. Web. 24 April 2014.
"The Americans With Disabilities Act is one of the most significant laws in American History. The preamble to the law states that it covers 43,000,000 Americans."(Frierson, p.3) Before the Americans With Disabilities Act(A.D.A.) was passed, employers were able to deny employment to a disabled worker, simply because he or she was disabled. With no other reason other than the persons physical disability were they turned away or released from a job. The Americans With Disabilities Act prevented this type of discrimination by establishing rules and regulations designed to protect persons with physical disabilities. With a workforce made up of 43,000,000 people, it is impossible to ignore the impact of these people. The Americans With Disabilities Act not only opened the door for millions of Americans to get back into the workplace, it is paving the road for new facilities in the workplace, new training programs and creating jobs designed for a disabled society.
The Americans with Disability Act of 1990 (ADA) was put into force to protect employees from discrimination with disabilities in the area of employment. A person with a disability can be defined under the ADA as someone who has a physical or mental impairment which considerably limits one or more of major life activities. “It has been estimated that nearly one in five Americans has one or more physical or mental disabilities”(law book pg115). The ADA federal law requires that employers with 15 or more employees not to discriminate against applicants and current employees with disabilities and, when needed, provide reasonable accommodations to these individuals who are more than qualified to work. These individuals are protected in regard to the application process, hiring, advancement, firing, compensation/benefits, training or other privileges of employment. If an individual is requesting accommodation due to a disability and can be reasonably accommodated without creating an undue hardship or causing a direct threat to workspace safety must be given the same consideration for employment as any other applicant. An employer is not obligated to hire anyone that is not qualifies to what is considered the essential functions of the job according to the ADA. An accommodation under the ADA must allow the employee enjoy equal benefits, given an equal opportunity for the person with the disability to be considered for the job and to perform the essential functions.
on August 3, 1996 (Detailed Legislative History). It has been said the bill would have died in the
Advance directives might have many guidelines for patient’s preferences with regard to any number of life-affecting, or end of life situations, such as chronic disease or accident resulting in traumatic injury. It can include directions for other health situations, such as short-term unconsciousness, impairment by Alzheimer disease or dementia. These guidelines may consider do-not- resuscitate (DNR) orders if the heart or breathing stops, tube-feeding, or organ and tissue donation. The directive might name a specific person, or proxy, to direct care or may be very general with only basic instructions given for treatment in time of the incapacitation of a patient. Some states say that if you do not have a written directive, a spoken directive is acceptable.
The Americans with Disabilities Act, TITLE 42 - THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE U.S.C. § 12101 - 12117 et seq. (Author 1990 ).
Any company with 15 or more employees must be in full compliance with the ADA. The ADA, "prohibits private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies, and labor unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions and privileges of employment" (U.S. EEOC, 2007). This includes applicants for employment and existing employees.
he informed his boss he had to take two days off. So this is a key
The purpose of The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 was to protect the civil rights of disabled Americans, as well as put an end to discrimination, and to make adjustments to better accommodate the disabled. When presented to Congress, the Act surpassed party lines and gained support and popularity very quickly. While in theory the ADA seems revolutionary and helpful; in practice it presents the disabled with numerous problems, most of these arise in the form of red tape.
However, he hasn't got any money from the family after joined the company, and sometimes had to work as a newspaper
Harassment and discrimination claims are due to lack of education about the subject. As an independent human resources consultant, Santiago-Santos will organize a local education campaign and provide employers with different trainings to educate them and their employees about harassment and discrimination. Employers will have a better understanding on how to develop internal policies and procedures to address these claims. Also, trainings will be provided for employees and they will be educated on how to prevent and identify harassment and discrimination as well as what steps to take in order to report such behavior.
Every day in America, a woman loses a job to a man, a homosexual high school student suffers from harassment, and someone with a physical or mental disability is looked down upon. People with disabilities make up the world’s largest and most disadvantaged minority, with about 56.7 million people living with disabilities in the United States today (Barlow). In every region of the country, people with disabilities often live on the margins of society, deprived from some of life’s fundamental experiences. They have little hope of inclusion within education, getting a job, or having their own home (Cox). Everyone deserves a fair chance to succeed in life, but discrimination is limiting opportunities and treating people badly because of their disability. Whether born from ignorance, fear, misunderstanding, or hate, society’s attitudes limit people from experiencing and appreciating the full potential a person with a disability can achieve. This treatment is unfair, unnecessary, and against the law (Purdie). Discrimination against people with disabilities is one of the greatest social injustices in the country today. Essential changes are needed in society’s basic outlook in order for people with disabilities to have an equal opportunity to succeed in life.