686 lines
33 KiB
Plaintext
686 lines
33 KiB
Plaintext
August 1991
|
||
|
||
|
||
THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT
|
||
|
||
By
|
||
|
||
Jeffrey Higginbotham J.D.
|
||
Special Agent
|
||
Legal Instructor
|
||
FBI Academy
|
||
Quantico, Virginia
|
||
|
||
|
||
On July 26, 1990, President Bush signed the Americans With
|
||
Disabilities Act (ADA), which poses new challenges for law
|
||
enforcement administrators. The ADA, which was enacted to
|
||
eliminate discrimination against individuals with disabilities,
|
||
provides protection against employment discrimination to
|
||
individuals who are disabled but nonetheless able to work. (1)
|
||
Though the ADA is not yet in effect, it will become effective
|
||
for employers with at least 25 employees on July 26, 1992, and
|
||
for employers with at least 15 employees on July 26, 1994. (2)
|
||
Therefore, law enforcement administrators should begin planning
|
||
now to ensure compliance with the act when it does become
|
||
effective.
|
||
|
||
The purpose of this article is to discuss the requirements
|
||
of the ADA. The article also brings to the attention of
|
||
administrators certain problem areas involving important policy
|
||
decisions that should be considered before the effective date of
|
||
the act. (3)
|
||
|
||
PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATION
|
||
|
||
The ADA prohibits employers from discriminating "...against
|
||
a qualified individual with a disability because of the
|
||
disability of such individual in regard to job application
|
||
procedures, the hiring, advancement, or discharge of employees,
|
||
employee compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions
|
||
and privileges of employment." (4) The ADA also prohibits an
|
||
employer from conducting a medical examination or making
|
||
inquiries of a job applicant concerning the nature or severity
|
||
of a disability, unless a conditional offer of employment has
|
||
been made. (5)
|
||
|
||
However, these general prohibitions of discrimination
|
||
against the disabled have two important thresholds that must be
|
||
met before a particular person is protected by the ADA. First,
|
||
an applicant or employee must be disabled under the terms of the
|
||
act. Second, in addition to that disability, the person must be
|
||
qualified to perform the job, with or without reasonable
|
||
accommodation by the employer. More importantly, the ADA does
|
||
not automatically require that disabled persons be hired;
|
||
rather, it demands equal employment opportunities, but only if
|
||
those persons are capable of performing the essential functions
|
||
of the job.
|
||
|
||
WHAT CONSTITUTES A DISABILITY UNDER THE ADA?
|
||
|
||
A person is defined by the ADA as disabled if that person
|
||
has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits
|
||
one or more major life activities, has a record of such
|
||
impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment. (6)
|
||
Generally, a person is disabled if that person has any
|
||
physiological disorder, condition, disfigurement, anatomical
|
||
loss, or mental or psychological disorder that makes that
|
||
individual unable to perform such functions as caring for
|
||
himself or herself, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing,
|
||
hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, or working to the same
|
||
extent as an average person. (7)
|
||
|
||
However, the exclusion of a person from a particular job or
|
||
position because of a physical or mental impairment is not
|
||
necessarily illegal discrimination under the ADA if that
|
||
individual is not "substantially limited" in a major life
|
||
activity. "[A]n individual is not substantially limited in
|
||
working just because he or she is unable to perform a particular
|
||
job for one employer, or because he or she is unable to perform
|
||
a specialized job or profession requiring extraordinary skill,
|
||
prowess or talent." (8)
|
||
|
||
In deciding whether a particular person is substantially
|
||
limited in the major life activity of working, it is instructive
|
||
to examine court decisions interpreting the Federal
|
||
Rehabilitation Act of 1973. (9) Courts have held that the
|
||
protections against handicap discrimination in that act do not
|
||
"...include working at the specific job of one's choice....Being
|
||
declared unsuitable for the particular position of police
|
||
officer is not a substantial limitation of a major life
|
||
activity." (10) For example, some disabilities may be
|
||
disqualifying for some jobs or professions. However, if these
|
||
disabilities do not act as a complete bar to other employment
|
||
opportunities, and the person is reasonably able to obtain
|
||
employment despite the disability, then under the ADA there is
|
||
no substantial limitation on the major life activity of working.
|
||
|
||
There are also certain conditions that the ADA expressly
|
||
excludes from protection. These include current illegal drug
|
||
use, homosexuality, bisexuality, transvestism, exhibitionism,
|
||
voyeurism, gender identity disorder, sexual behavior disorder,
|
||
compulsive gambling, kleptomania, pyromania, and psychoactive
|
||
substance use disorders resulting from current illegal use of
|
||
drugs. (11) Persons with these conditions are excluded from the
|
||
act's definition of disabled persons.
|
||
|
||
The ADA's exclusion of current illegal drug users as
|
||
protected disabled persons raises a potential concern for law
|
||
enforcement employers. While current illegal drug users do not
|
||
fall within the definition of a qualified disabled individual,
|
||
(12) former drug users are arguably protected by a provision in
|
||
the ADA, which provides that a protected disability includes a
|
||
person who:
|
||
|
||
"...1) has successfully completed a supervised drug
|
||
rehabilitation program and is no longer engaging in the
|
||
illegal use of drugs, or has otherwise been rehabilitated
|
||
successfully and is no longer engaging in such use; [or]
|
||
|
||
2) is participating in a supervised rehabilitation program
|
||
and is no longer engaging in such use." (13)
|
||
|
||
While there is no caselaw directly on point, it might be
|
||
argued that despite the above-cited ADA provision, law
|
||
enforcement employment can be denied to a former illegal drug
|
||
user because that persons prior conduct evinces unacceptable
|
||
character traits, lack of judgment, or failure to abide by the
|
||
law, all of which are relevant to the hiring and employment of
|
||
police officers. (14)
|
||
|
||
WHAT CONSTITUTES A "QUALIFIED" INDIVIDUAL UNDER THE ADA?
|
||
|
||
The determination that a physical or mental impairment
|
||
substantially limits a major life activity and renders a person
|
||
disabled under the ADA only completes the first threshold
|
||
requirement for protection. The ADA also requires that disabled
|
||
persons be nonetheless qualified to perform the work required.
|
||
|
||
The ADA defines a "qualified individual with a disability"
|
||
as "...an individual with a disability who, with or without
|
||
reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of
|
||
the employment position that such individual holds or desires."
|
||
(15) A law enforcement administrator's judgment as to what
|
||
functions are essential to a job and any written job description
|
||
used during the application or hiring process are considered
|
||
under the ADA to be evidence of a position's essential functions.
|
||
(16)
|
||
|
||
Also relevant to these essential functions determinations
|
||
are the amount of time expended during the workday performing
|
||
certain functions, the consequences if those tasks are not
|
||
performed, and the work experience of current and past
|
||
incumbents of the position. (17) Law enforcement administrators
|
||
should carefully identify the essential functions of each
|
||
particular job in their department, since the clear import of
|
||
the ADA is that discrimination on the basis of a disability that
|
||
affects only marginal or peripheral functions and not the
|
||
performance of essential functions is illegal. (18)
|
||
|
||
Police administrators preparing for the full implementation
|
||
of the ADA would be well-served to review each job
|
||
classification within their agency thoroughly, paying particular
|
||
attention to tasks that require special skills, talents, or
|
||
abilities to perform the job's essential functions. The
|
||
essential functions should be isolated so that informed
|
||
judgments can be made as to the capability of disabled
|
||
applicants or employees to hold those jobs successfully.
|
||
|
||
WHEN DO MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS AND INQUIRIES VIOLATE THE ADA?
|
||
|
||
The ADA contains specific prohibitions and requirements
|
||
concerning medical examinations and inquiries about
|
||
disabilities. The ADA provides that an employer can only
|
||
"...conduct a medical examination or make inquiries of a job
|
||
applicant as to whether such applicant is an individual with a
|
||
disability or as to the nature or severity of such
|
||
disability...after an offer of employment has been made to a job
|
||
applicant...." (19)
|
||
|
||
The employer may, however, condition an offer of employment
|
||
on the results of such an examination. (20) Where a medical
|
||
examination is required after a conditional offer of employment
|
||
is made, the following three additional restrictions are
|
||
contained in the statute:
|
||
|
||
1) All new employees must be subject to the medical
|
||
examination;
|
||
|
||
2) The information obtained during the medical examination
|
||
and the medical history of the applicant collected must
|
||
be maintained "...on separate forms and in separate
|
||
files and...treated as a confidential medical
|
||
record..."; (21) and
|
||
|
||
3) The results of the examination may be used only in
|
||
accordance with the act. (22)
|
||
|
||
EFFECTS ON HIRING PRACTICES
|
||
|
||
The ADA's limitations on medical examinations and inquiries
|
||
concerning disabilities may require several significant changes
|
||
in police hiring practices. First, those law enforcement
|
||
agencies that require applicants to undergo a complete medical
|
||
examination early in the application process may be required to
|
||
shift the medical examination to the later stages of the
|
||
application process. This is because law enforcement agencies
|
||
covered by the ADA will have to first determine that an
|
||
applicant is eligible to be hired and make a conditional offer
|
||
of employment before subjecting the applicant to a medical
|
||
examination. Second, law enforcement executives will have to
|
||
ensure the medical standards tested during the examination,
|
||
which might be disqualifying, are related to the essential
|
||
functions of the job before the offer of employment can be
|
||
withdrawn.
|
||
|
||
A third likely change in police hiring practices concerns
|
||
psychological testing. The use of psychological testing as an
|
||
employment screening device appears to be a growing practice,
|
||
(23) with some States requiring it as matter of law. (24) While
|
||
the ADA does not ban the use of psychological testing, it may
|
||
require such testing be postponed until after a conditional
|
||
offer of employment is made because: 1) Psychological testing
|
||
may be construed to be a form of medical examination; and 2) the
|
||
ADA defines a disability to include a mental disorder or
|
||
impairment that substantially limits a major life activity. To
|
||
the extent that psychological testing for personnel screening
|
||
identifies such conditions, the test would be subject to the ADA
|
||
requirement that such medical examinations and inquiries about
|
||
disabilities be done only after offers of employment are made.
|
||
|
||
A fourth possible change to hiring practices concerns
|
||
application forms that currently contain a section for medical
|
||
information that requires applicants to list potentially
|
||
disabling impairments. Because the ADA provides that such
|
||
inquiries can only be made after an offer of employment,
|
||
application forms provided to applicants as an initial step in
|
||
the hiring process may have to be altered to remove medical and
|
||
disability inquiries. Moreover, the ADA's prohibition on
|
||
inquiries as to the nature or severity of disabilities may also
|
||
affect interviews of police applicants by requiring that
|
||
interviewers be familiar with the ADA and refrain from making
|
||
any prohibited inquiries about an applicant's disability.
|
||
|
||
Finally, the ADA may require law enforcement agencies to
|
||
rethink their physical ability hiring standards. Tests that
|
||
measure overall levels of fitness or specific physical abilities
|
||
as a condition of employment can now be challenged under the ADA
|
||
as not being job-related or consistent with a business
|
||
necessity. Law enforcement physical ability and agility tests
|
||
have already spawned considerable litigation under Title VII of
|
||
the Civil Rights Act, and the ADA provides an additional basis
|
||
on which to raise legal challenges. (25)
|
||
|
||
PERMITTED EXAMINATIONS AND INQUIRIES
|
||
|
||
There are four instances where the ADA permits medical
|
||
examinations or inquiries. First, employers can question
|
||
applicants about their ability to perform job-related functions,
|
||
(26) but such questions should not be phrased in terms of the
|
||
disability. (27) For example, police applicants could be asked
|
||
about their ability to drive a car or run a given distance
|
||
within an established time period as a job-related function, but
|
||
should not be asked if there are physical limitations that
|
||
prevent the applicant from driving or running.
|
||
|
||
Similarly, an employer is permitted to require fitness for
|
||
duty examinations of current employees if required by State law
|
||
or when there is a need to determine whether the employee is
|
||
still able to perform the essential functions of the job.
|
||
However, employers cannot require the fitness for duty
|
||
examination if the employee's condition was not related to job
|
||
performance. (28)
|
||
|
||
Second, it is permissible to conduct voluntary medical
|
||
examinations and collect voluntary medical histories as part of
|
||
an employee health program available to all employees at the
|
||
work site. (29) Third, medical examinations of employees or
|
||
inquiries about the nature or severity of a disability are
|
||
permissible if shown to be "job-related and consistent with
|
||
business necessity." (30) Fourth, the ADA specifically exempts
|
||
drug testing from the medical examination prohibitions. Though
|
||
it does not appear Congress intended to encourage drug testing
|
||
by employers, those that choose to do so are not constrained by
|
||
the ADA. (31)
|
||
|
||
DEFENSES TO CHARGES OF UNLAWFUL DISCRIMINATION
|
||
|
||
While the ADA is designed to ensure that qualified disabled
|
||
persons are given the same consideration for employment as
|
||
non-disabled persons, it also provides the following three
|
||
defenses that can be raised by employers charged with unlawful
|
||
discrimination:
|
||
|
||
1) The qualification standards, tests, or selection
|
||
criteria are job-related and consistent with business
|
||
necessity;
|
||
|
||
2) The disabled individual, if hired, would pose a direct
|
||
threat to the health or safety of the individual or
|
||
others; and
|
||
|
||
3) The employer is unable to reasonably accommodate the
|
||
disability of the individual. (32)
|
||
|
||
The Job-related and Consistent with Business Necessity Defense
|
||
|
||
The concepts of job-relatedness and business necessity
|
||
require that law enforcement administrators preparing for the
|
||
implementation of the ADA conduct an analysis of jobs and tasks
|
||
for the purpose of identifying the essential functions of each
|
||
position. Then, administrators must devise standards and
|
||
criteria that accurately reflect and measure those elements.
|
||
(33) If this is done properly, employment decisions may be made,
|
||
even if they adversely affect disabled persons.
|
||
|
||
This defense is also important where an employer withdraws
|
||
an offer of employment based on the results of a medical
|
||
examination. The job-relatedness and consistency with business
|
||
necessity must be shown if the exclusionary criteria of a
|
||
medical examination screens out disabled persons. (34)
|
||
|
||
The Direct Threat to Health or Safety Defense
|
||
|
||
Employers can lawfully refuse to hire a disabled person
|
||
where the individual, if hired, would pose a direct threat to
|
||
the health or safety of others in the workplace. (35) A direct
|
||
threat is defined by the ADA as "...a significant risk to the
|
||
health or safety of others that cannot be eliminated by
|
||
reasonable accommodation." (36)
|
||
|
||
Such determinations should be made on a case-by-case basis,
|
||
and employers should carefully base their decisions on sound
|
||
medical knowledge and other objective factors, including the
|
||
duration of the risk, the nature and severity of the potential
|
||
harm, and the likelihood that the potential harm would occur.
|
||
(37) For example, a physical or mental condition that prevents
|
||
an individual from safely operating a patrol car or discharging
|
||
a firearm could constitute a lawful basis for terminating or
|
||
refusing employment as a patrol officer, even though that person
|
||
would be an otherwise "qualified disabled person" under the ADA.
|
||
|
||
Police administrators should be circumspect in invoking
|
||
this defense since generalized fears, remote possibilities, or
|
||
only slightly enhanced threats to safety or health are
|
||
insufficient reasons for denying employment to a qualified
|
||
disabled person. (38) Employment decisions must be based on
|
||
articulable and objective evidence.
|
||
|
||
The Inability to Reasonably Accommodate Defense
|
||
|
||
A third defense available to employers is an inability to
|
||
reasonably accommodate the disability of an employee or
|
||
applicant. The notion underlying the term "reasonable
|
||
accommodation" is that an employer may be able to make certain
|
||
adjustments to the workplace or to the conditions of employment
|
||
so that a disabled person, who otherwise possesses the
|
||
qualifications required for a particular position, is able to
|
||
function as a productive employee.
|
||
|
||
The ADA expressly embodies the requirement for reasonable
|
||
accommodation in its definition of a qualified individual with a
|
||
disability. (39) An employer's failure to make reasonable
|
||
accommodations to the known physical or mental limitations of
|
||
otherwise qualified applicants or employees is proscribed by the
|
||
act. (40)
|
||
|
||
While the duty to accommodate the disability of an employee
|
||
or applicant reasonably is clear, the degree to which an
|
||
employer is required to alter the conditions of employment is
|
||
less clear. Some of the express requirements of reasonable
|
||
accommodation include: 1) Making existing facilities readily
|
||
accessible to and usable by disabled individuals; 2) job
|
||
restructuring; 3) part-time or modified work schedules; 4)
|
||
reassignment to a vacant position; 5) acquisition or
|
||
modification of equipment; 6) modification of examinations,
|
||
training and policies; and 7) the provision of qualified readers
|
||
or interpreters.(41)
|
||
|
||
However, the ADA does not require that employers make all
|
||
possible modifications to working conditions under the
|
||
obligation of reasonable accommodation. For example,
|
||
alterations that are primarily for the personal benefit of the
|
||
individual or are not job-related do not fall within the
|
||
obligation of reasonable accommodation. (42) The accommodation
|
||
need not be the employee's or applicants preference or even the
|
||
"best" accommodation, so long as it is sufficient to meet the
|
||
job-related needs of the disabled person. (43) Similarly, an
|
||
employer is not required to restructure the essential functions
|
||
of a position to fit the skills of the disabled person or create
|
||
a new job that the disabled person can perform. (44)
|
||
|
||
In addition, an employer is not required to accommodate a
|
||
disabled employee or applicant reasonably if it would create an
|
||
undue hardship on the operation of the employer's business. (45)
|
||
The ADA lists the following factors that should be considered in
|
||
determining whether a particular act or modification would
|
||
create an undue hardship: 1) The nature and cost of the
|
||
accommodation; 2) the overall financial resources of the
|
||
employer and the particular facility where the accommodation is
|
||
needed; 3) the number of persons employed at such facilities and
|
||
by the employer in general; and 4) the impact of the
|
||
accommodation upon the operation of the facility. (46)
|
||
|
||
The Supreme Court has interpreted a similar reasonable
|
||
accommodation requirement under the Federal Rehabilitation Act.
|
||
(47) In School Board of Nassau County v. Arline, (48) a school
|
||
teacher with tuberculosis was removed from his classroom
|
||
assignment. In addressing the school district's obligation to
|
||
reasonably accommodate the handicapped employee, the Supreme
|
||
Court stated:
|
||
|
||
"Although [employers] are not required to find another job
|
||
for an employee who is qualified for the job he or she was
|
||
doing, they cannot deny an employee alternative employment
|
||
opportunities reasonably available under the employer's
|
||
existing policies." (49)
|
||
|
||
Similarly, in Southeastern Community College v. Davis, (50)
|
||
the Court ruled that accommodation of an employee's handicap is
|
||
not reasonable when it requires a fundamental change in the
|
||
nature of an employer's program.
|
||
|
||
There is no indication that Congress intended the ADA's
|
||
reference to job restructuring as a form of reasonable
|
||
accommodation to undercut the Supreme Courts decisions in Arline
|
||
and Davis. The ADA does not obligate employers to create new
|
||
jobs or remove essential functions from the requirements of a
|
||
particular position. However, where a vacant job exists which a
|
||
disabled person could successfully perform, reassignment may be
|
||
required as a form of reasonable accommodation. But, permanent
|
||
assignment to light duty positions would not be required, unless
|
||
permanent light duty positions are normally available. (51)
|
||
|
||
CONCLUSION
|
||
|
||
The ADA will require law enforcement administrators to
|
||
analyze their personnel and hiring practices and to determine
|
||
the essential functions of each position in the department. A
|
||
department's application process may have to be restructured to
|
||
ensure that medical and psychological tests are used only after
|
||
a conditional offer of employment has been made, unless such
|
||
tests can be shown to be job-related and consistent with
|
||
business necessity. Law enforcement administrators should also
|
||
determine whether changes in the workplace or conditions of
|
||
employment or other reasonable accommodation can be made to
|
||
permit an otherwise qualified disabled person to perform jobs
|
||
successfully within the police agency.
|
||
|
||
The ADA will pose new challenges for law enforcement
|
||
administrators. However, with careful pre-planning and
|
||
appropriate consultation with the Equal Employment Opportunity
|
||
Commission, administrators can meet these challenges and ensure
|
||
that their departmental policies and practices are legally
|
||
defensible when the ADA becomes effective.
|
||
|
||
|
||
FOOTNOTES
|
||
|
||
(1) 42 U.S.C. 12101 (1990).
|
||
|
||
(2) The ADA becomes effective 24 months after the date of
|
||
enactment. In addition, 42 U.S.C. 12111(5)(A) provides that
|
||
employers with 25 or more employees are subject to the act as of
|
||
that date, and that employers with 15 or more employees will be
|
||
subject to the act 2 years after that date. Those employers with
|
||
fewer than 15 employees are not subject to the ADA. The ADA is
|
||
not applicable to the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government.
|
||
However, a closely parallel statute, the Federal Rehabilitation
|
||
Act, 29 U.S.C. 794, already imposes many of the same requirements
|
||
on the Federal Government.
|
||
|
||
(3) In addition to other requirements discussed in this
|
||
article, the ADA imposes an obligation on employers to "post
|
||
notices in an accessible format to applicants, employees and
|
||
members describing the applicable provisions of the Act." 42
|
||
U.S.C. 12115. It is recommended that in planning for
|
||
implementation of the ADA, law enforcement administrators
|
||
contact their local Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
|
||
(EEOC) office to consult on the appropriate language to be
|
||
contained in these notices and for guidance as to the number and
|
||
location of the required notices.
|
||
|
||
(4) 42 U.S.C. 12112(a).
|
||
|
||
(5) 42 U.S.C. 12112(c). The ADA is patterned largely
|
||
after Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the statute
|
||
that prohibits employment discrimination based on sex, race,
|
||
religion, color, or national origin. The remedies available to
|
||
an aggrieved qualified disabled person mirror the relief
|
||
available under Title VII. See, 42 U.S.C. 12117. An employer
|
||
who illegally discriminates against qualified disabled persons
|
||
may be liable for lost wages, attorneys' fees, costs, and
|
||
equitable relief.
|
||
|
||
(6) 42 U.S.C. 12102(2).
|
||
|
||
(7) See, proposed EEOC regulations, Sections 1630.2(h) and
|
||
(i), 56 Fed. Reg. 8578 (1991) (to be codified at 29 C.F.R. 1630)
|
||
(proposed February 28, 1991).
|
||
|
||
(8) See, proposed EEOC Interpretive Guidance on Title I of
|
||
the Americans With Disabilities Act, Part 1630.2(j), 50 Fed.
|
||
Reg. 8591 (1991) (proposed February 28, 1991).
|
||
|
||
(9) 29 U.S.C. 790. Cases decided under the Federal
|
||
Rehabilitation Act are precedentially significant in
|
||
interpreting the ADA because "Congress intended that the
|
||
relevant caselaw developed under the Rehabilitation Act be
|
||
generally applicable to the term `disability' as used in the
|
||
ADA." See, proposed EEOC Interpretive Guidance on Title I of
|
||
the ADA, Part 1630.2(g), supra, note 8 and 42 U.S.C. 12201(a).
|
||
|
||
(10) Daley v. Koch, 892 F.2d 212, 215 (2d Cir. 1989). See
|
||
also, Forrissi v. Bowen, 794 F.2d 931 (4th Cir. 1986) and
|
||
Padilla v. City of Topeka, 708 P.2d 543 (Kan. 1985).
|
||
|
||
(11) 42 U.S.C. 12208 and 12211.
|
||
|
||
(12) 42 U.S.C. 12210(a).
|
||
|
||
(13) 42 U.S.C. 12210(b).
|
||
|
||
(14) See, Johnson v. Smith, 39 F.E.P. Cases 1106 (D. Minn.
|
||
1985). An analogous argument was successful in Huff v. Israel,
|
||
573 F.Supp. 107 (M.D. Ga. 1983), where a law enforcement employee
|
||
was dismissed following three off-duty convictions for driving
|
||
under the influence of alcohol. The employee sued, claiming
|
||
protection of the Rehabilitation Act. The court ruled that the
|
||
employee was not being dismissed because of his handicap
|
||
(alcoholism), but because of his criminal convictions, which
|
||
demonstrated his inability to carry out the duties of law
|
||
enforcement when he personally could not comply with the law.
|
||
See also, Copeland v. Philadelphia Police Department, 840 F.2d
|
||
1139 (3d Cir. 1988), cert. denied, 109 S.Ct. 1636 (1989)
|
||
(termination of officer who used marijuana did not violate the
|
||
Rehabilitation Act, since the officer was not otherwise qualified
|
||
to perform the job). Accord, AFGE v. Skinner, 885 F.2d 884 (D.C.
|
||
Cir. 1988), cert. denied, 110 S.Ct. 1960 (1990); Herron v.
|
||
McGuire, 803 F.2d 67 (2d Cir. 1986); Burka v. N.Y. Transit
|
||
Authority, 680 F.Supp. 590 (S.D.N.Y. 1988).
|
||
|
||
(15) 42 U.S.C. 12111(8).
|
||
|
||
(16) Id.
|
||
|
||
(17) See, proposed EEOC regulations, Sections 1630.2(n),
|
||
supra, note 7.
|
||
|
||
(18) The following cases discuss various physical and
|
||
mental conditions that have been litigated under the Federal
|
||
Rehabilitation Act, see, infra, note 9, and may have
|
||
precedential significance in interpreting the ADA:
|
||
Vision--Trembczynski v. City of Calumet City, No. 87C 0961
|
||
(N.D. Ill. 1987) (not reported, text in Westlaw); Padilla v.
|
||
City of Topeka, 708 P.2d 543 (Kansas 1985); City of Belleville
|
||
Police and Fire Commissioners v. Human Rights Commission, 522
|
||
N.E.2d 268 (Ill. App. 5 Dist. 1988); City of Columbus v. Ohio
|
||
Civil Rights Commission, 492 N.E.2d 482 (Ohio App. 1985); State
|
||
by Cooper v. Hennepin County, 425 N.W.2d 278 (Minn. App. 1988),
|
||
aff'd, 441 N.W.2d 106 (Minn. 1989). Back or Shoulder
|
||
Injury--Dancy v. Kline, 44 F.E.P. Cases 380 (N.D. Ill. 1987);
|
||
Mullen v. Princess Anne Volunteer Fire Co., Inc., 853 F.2d 1130
|
||
(4th Cir. 1988); Daniels v. Barry, 659 F.Supp. 999 (D.D.C.
|
||
1987); Mahoney v. Ortiz, 645 F.Supp. 22 (S.D.N.Y. 1986).
|
||
Hypertension--Jurgella v. Danielson, 764 P.2d 27 (Ariz. App.
|
||
1988). Heart Condition--Cook v. Department of Labor, 688 F.2d
|
||
669 (9th Cir. 1982), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 832 (1983); Walker
|
||
v. Attorney General of the United States, 570 F.Supp. 100
|
||
(D.D.C. 1983). Disease--School Board of Nassau County v.
|
||
Arline, 107 S.Ct. 1123 (1987); Local 1812, AFGE v. Department of
|
||
State, 662 F.Supp. 50 (D.D.C. 1987); Shelby Township Fire Dept.
|
||
v. Shields, 320 N.W.2d 306 (Mich. App. 1982).
|
||
Epilepsy--Pineiro v. Lehman, 653 F.Supp. 483 (D.P.R. 1987);
|
||
Costner v. United States, 720 F.2d 539 (8th Cir. 1983); Duran v.
|
||
City of Tampa, 430 F.Supp. 75 (M.D. Fla. 1977). Psychological
|
||
Ailment--Desper v. Montgomery County, 727 F.Supp. 959 (E.D. Pa.
|
||
1990); Pickut v. Dept. of Air Force, 24 MSPR 433 (M.S.P.B. 184);
|
||
Daley v. Koch, 892 F.2d 212 (2d Cir. 1989). Hearing
|
||
Loss--Packard v. Gordon, 537 A.2d 140 (Vt. 1987). Alcohol--Huff
|
||
v. Israel, 573 F.Supp. 107 (M.D. Ga. 1983).
|
||
Allergies--Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Pennsylvania Human
|
||
Relations Commission, 457 A.2d 584 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1983). Missing
|
||
Organ--Pennsylvania State Police v. Commonwealth, 483 A.2d 1039
|
||
(Pa. Cmwlth. 1984), revd on other grounds, 517 A.2d 1253 (Pa.
|
||
1985). Weight--Tudyman v. United Airlines, 608 F.Supp. 739
|
||
(C.D. Cal. 1984); United Paramedics of Los Angeles v. City of
|
||
Los Angeles, No. 89-1182-R, C.D. Cal. 3/8/89; Smith v. Folmar,
|
||
534 So.2d 309 (Ala. Civ. App. 1988).
|
||
|
||
(19) 42 U.S.C. 12112 (c)(2)-(3).
|
||
|
||
(20) Id.
|
||
|
||
(21) Id.
|
||
|
||
(22) Id. The permitted uses of medical information
|
||
include notification to supervisors and managers of duty or work
|
||
restriction; notice to first aid, safety, or emergency
|
||
personnel; and disclosure to government officials investigating
|
||
compliance with the ADA.
|
||
|
||
(23) 36 Law and Order 66 (Feb. 1988) (55% of law
|
||
enforcement agencies nationwide now use psychological testing
|
||
for personnel screening).
|
||
|
||
(24) See, e.g., Young, "Reviewing the Pre-Employment
|
||
Psychological Test," Journal of California Law Enforcement, vol.
|
||
22, No. 47, 1988.
|
||
|
||
(25) For a discussion of some of these legal issues, see,
|
||
Daniel L. Schofield, "Establishing Health and Fitness Standards:
|
||
Legal Considerations," FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, vol. 58,
|
||
No. 6, June 1989.
|
||
|
||
(26) 42 U.S.C. 12112(c)(2)(B) and 12112 (c)(4).
|
||
|
||
(27) See, proposed EEOC Interpretive Guidance of Title I
|
||
of the ADA, APart 1630.13(b), supra, note 8.
|
||
|
||
(28) Id.
|
||
|
||
(29) 42 U.S.C. 12112 (c)(4)(B).
|
||
|
||
(30) 42 U.S.C. 12112(c)(4)(A).
|
||
|
||
(31) 42 U.S.C. 12114(d).
|
||
|
||
(32) 42 U.S.C. 12113.
|
||
|
||
(33) Neither the ADA nor the proposed regulations provide
|
||
a definition of "job-related" or "business necessity." However,
|
||
both terms have been used in connection with Title VII
|
||
litigation and caselaw under that statute would be instructive
|
||
on their meaning in the ADA.
|
||
|
||
(34) See, proposed EEOC Interpretive Guidance on Title I
|
||
of the Americans With Disabilities Act, Part 1630.14(b), supra,
|
||
note 8.
|
||
|
||
(35) 42 U.S.C. 12113(b).
|
||
|
||
(36) 42 U.S.C. 12111(3). However, the proposed
|
||
regulations and guidelines issued by the EEOC expand this to
|
||
include direct threats to the health or safety of the applicant
|
||
or employee personally, as well as to other persons. See,
|
||
proposed EEOC regulations, Section 1630.2(r), supra, note 7;
|
||
EEOC Interpretive Guidance on Title I of the Americans With
|
||
Disabilities Act, Section 1630.2(r), supra, note 8.
|
||
|
||
(37) See, proposed EEOC regulations, Section 1630.2(r),
|
||
supra, note 7.
|
||
|
||
(38) See, proposed EEOC Interpretive Guidance on Title I
|
||
of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 1630.2(r),
|
||
supra, note 8.
|
||
|
||
(39) 42 U.S.C. 12111(8).
|
||
|
||
(40) 42 U.S.C. 12112(b)(5)(A).
|
||
|
||
(41) 42 U.S.C. 12111(9)
|
||
|
||
(42) See, proposed EEOC Interpretive Guidance on Title I
|
||
of the Americans With Disabilities Act, Part 1630.2(o), supra,
|
||
note 8.
|
||
|
||
(43) Id.
|
||
|
||
(44) Id.
|
||
|
||
(45) 42 U.S.C. 12112(b)(5)(A).
|
||
|
||
(46) 42 U.S.C. 12111(10).
|
||
|
||
(47) 29 U.S.C. 794.
|
||
|
||
(48) 107 S.Ct. 1123 (1987).
|
||
|
||
(49) Id. at 1131, n.16.
|
||
|
||
(50) 442 U.S. 397 (1979).
|
||
|
||
(51) See, Simon v. St. Louis County, 735 F.2d 1082 (8th
|
||
Cir. 1984); Dancy v. Kline, 44 F.E.P. Cases 380 (N.D. Ill,
|
||
1987); Pineiro v. Lehman, 653 F.Supp. 483 (D.P.R. 1987).
|
||
|