Employees’ Disability Rights Under the ADA

The ADA represents a promise by the federal government of equal access to opportunity for all. It prohibits discrimination in employment against qualified individuals with disabilities. It protects both job applicants and employees.

Knowing the law and your rights can help you stop discrimination at work. If you believe someone has harassed you or violated your rights under the ADA, discuss your options with an employment lawyer.

Employment Rights for Workers With Disabilities

The ADA protects employees’ rights against disability discrimination across employment practices, such as:

• Recruitment
• Hiring process and job offers
• Firing
• Pay
• Benefits
• Promotions
• Training
• Job assignments

Employer retaliation for asserting your ADA rights is also prohibited. So is discrimination from having a relationship with an individual with a disability.

This law applies to private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies, labor organizations (such as unions) and labor-management committees.

Summary of ADA Titles

The ADA has five titles, which each address a category of discriminatory issues as follows:

• Title I: Prohibits disability discrimination in employment and requires reasonable accommodations
• Title II: Prohibits disability discrimination by the government, such as in public services
• Title III: Prohibits disability discrimination in public accommodations, even for privately owned commercial facilities like restaurants and hotels
• Title IV: Requires accessibility standards for telecommunications services related to hearing and speech impairments
• Title V: Describes miscellaneous requirements and prohibitions like retaliation

Title I and Title V are usually the most relevant parts of this federal law for employment discrimination claims.

What Is a Disability under ADA Protections?

Under the ADA, you may have a disability if you have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity.

If you have a history of a disability, the ADA can still protect you. For example, you may still have disability protection even if you are between flare ups of your symptoms.

You must also have a record of the impairment. Yet, ADA protections still apply if an employer believes you have a disability, even if no actual disability exists.

A Disability Affects Your Major Life Activities

To be protected under the ADA, a disability must be “substantial.” This term is a key part of defining a disability. Employees may have conditions that affect their lives in more minor ways.

Protected disabilities pose a significant difficulty to major life activities, such as:

• Speaking
• Seeing
• Hearing
• Walking, standing, bending, or sitting
• Performing manual tasks
• Breathing
• Learning
• Concentrating or thinking
• Reading

The ADA Amendments Act of 2008 clarifies how the law defines a disability. It describes how an impairment’s effect on major bodily functions could also qualify as a disability.

A Disability Blocks You from Fulfilling Job Duties

You must be qualified to adequately perform the essentials of the job, whether or not you require a reasonable accommodation, in order to be covered by the ADA. That means you must fulfill the requirements for the job (education, experience, skills, etc.) and you must be able to perform the essential functions of a job.

Employers can only refuse to hire you if your disability limits you from performing tasks that are considered essential to the job. If you can’t do a task that is unnecessary or unrelated to the job, the employer can’t refuse to hire you for that reason alone.

An impairment that only affects specific jobs might not be a qualifying disability. For example, suppose a woman seeks a commercial pilot's license. She is too nearsighted to perform essential functions of the job. She may not have a disability under the ADA if her nearsightedness only disqualifies her from a job as a pilot. It does not limit her ability to perform various other jobs.

Does Using an Assistive Device Count as a Disability?

The need for an assistive device doesn’t automatically determine whether you have a protected disability. The ADA generally emphasizes whether the impairment causes a substantial limitation. A worker could still have significant difficulties despite using equipment.

On the other hand, a worker may use equipment for a more mild, nondisabling condition. For example, reading glasses offer a minor vision correction. An employee can wear them to see and read similarly to the general population. The need for reading glasses would not be a qualifying disability. Or, suppose an employee is hard of hearing but has normal hearing when wearing a hearing aid. The ADA might not consider this employee to have a physical disability.

Low-vision eyeglasses, hearing aids, and mobility aids are common examples of “mitigating measures” under the ADA. These corrective devices may reduce or eliminate the ways the employee’s impairment limits their activities. However, employers don’t have a responsibility to provide these personal devices under the ADA.

Does the ADA Cover Substance Abuse and Addictions?

Individuals who use drugs illegally are not protected by the ADA, even if they are in a substance abuse treatment program. Drug testing laws help protect workers’ privacy, but the ADA does not cover many types of drug-related conditions.

However, the ADA can protect conditions related to legal substances. The ADA specifically mentions alcoholism and drug abuse. For example, tobacco smokers may have rights under the ADA related to quitting smoking.

Similarly, alcoholism and related health effects can be a qualifying disability. The ADA does not protect employees whose use of alcohol or drugs prevents them from performing their job duties. But it does protect an employee who can perform their job duties despite an alcohol addiction. The ADA can also protect employees who recovered from alcohol or drugs.

Right To Reasonable Accommodations at Work

ADA rights include access to reasonable accommodations, such as changes or adjustments to the workplace. These changes can help an employee with a disability do their job and enjoy the same benefits as employees without disabilities.

Reasonable accommodations may include the following:

• Flexible or modified work schedules
• Work from home or hybrid work schedules
• Adjustment of training materials and employee policies
• Providing new or modifying existing equipment
• Making the workplace more accessible for people with disabilities
• Job restructuring
• Reassignment to another position
• Providing sign language interpreters

A "reasonable" accommodation means ADA regulations don’t require measures that would create an undue hardship in difficulty or expense for the employer.

Rights Regarding Medical Examinations at Work

The ADA prohibits employers from asking you to take a medical examination prior to offering you a job. Yet, an offer may be conditional on your passing a medical examination if all employees in the same job category are required to do so as well.

Employers may use the results of a pre-employment examination to exclude you from consideration for the job only if it is specifically job-related. In other words, they may not exclude you if you can perform the essential functions of the job with or without a reasonable accommodation.

Employers are allowed to conduct medical examinations on a voluntary basis, such as those related to a health or wellness program, and they may provide required medical information pertaining to a workers' compensation claim. Results of medical examinations are considered confidential and must be maintained in separate files.

Right to a Safe Work Environment With a Disability

You have rights for workplace safety, including an environment free from disability harassment and proper protection against hazards. The ADA works alongside the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) to keep all workers safe.

Employers must intervene if coworkers, customers, or third parties harass an employee. It must also check that any reasonable accommodations minimize risks from machinery, chemical exposure, and other dangers at work.

Yet, safety also requires limitations under the law. ADA job protections don’t apply if an employee’s circumstances pose a direct threat to themselves or coworkers in the workplace. Accommodations might not be enough to keep the employee safe from a critical hazard. Termination, job changes, or refusal to hire the worker may not be discriminatory if the danger is too high.

Who Enforces the ADA?

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces ADA regulations among employers with 15 or more employees.

The U.S. Department of Justice enforces ADA regulations in state and local government programs, regardless of how many employees are in the organization.

What to Do if You Have Been Discriminated Against

You have rights to report disability discrimination and seek a fair remedy. If you believe you have been discriminated against on the basis of a real or perceived disability in an employment context, contact the EEOC within 180 days of the alleged discriminatory act. If a state or local law also protects against discrimination on the basis of disability, you may have as many as 300 days to file a charge.

You may file a charge by calling or visiting your local EEOC field office. If the agency concludes through its investigation that discrimination did in fact occur, you are entitled to a remedy that will "make you whole" or compensate for the discriminatory act. This may include getting hired, promoted, reinstated, paid back wages, provided with a reasonable accommodation and even repaid attorneys fees.

Additional ADA Assistance

A technical assistance program is available through the EEOC to promote ADA compliance among employers and to help people with disabilities better understand their ADA rights. Additionally, the EEOC published a Technical Assistance Manual to help with the practical application of ADA regulations to specific jobs and employment activities.

Disputes resulting from misunderstandings between employers and employees may be resolved through negotiations or mediation, as opposed to the formal enforcement process.

Ask a Lawyer About Disabilities and Employee Rights

Employment discrimination claims typically involve a disparity in the power and resources of the parties involved. If you've been discriminated against you can even the odds by getting professional legal counsel. Contact a local employment attorney to learn how they can help you demand fair treatment.