Medical conditions and disabilities are protected in a variety of ways under federal discrimination statutes. For example, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) expanded on pre-existing protections and created obligations for employers. As a result, businesses should not consider someone’s medical conditions when deciding whether or not to hire a worker, who to promote or which employees to include in the layoff. Unfortunately, disability discrimination is still a relatively common occurrence.
Nowadays, workers with medical conditions ranging from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to paraplegia may face unfair discrimination in the workplace. The following are some of the forms of disability discrimination that can arise on the job.
A refusal to provide reasonable accommodations
One of the basic responsibilities of employers under the ADA is to assist workers with medical needs so that they can do their job safely. Providing reasonable accommodations might involve letting a worker do their job remotely or providing assistive technology. A refusal to provide accommodations is one of the most common forms of disability discrimination reported.
Ignoring coworker harassment
People often treat those who look or act differently less favorably than others in the workplace. They might make jokes at someone’s expense, exclude them from social opportunities or create a hostile work environment. Employers should take immediate action to correct any significant discrimination based on someone’s disabilities. When companies turn a blind eye, especially after a worker reports the harassment, that could be a form of unfair discrimination.
Denying a worker reasonable opportunities
Some companies may hire individuals with disabling medical conditions, but they may never allow those people to advance within the company. The company benefits from the optics of compliance without treating the worker the same as everyone else. Promotion discrimination and other denied opportunities can be a form of disability discrimination that causes long-term economic harm for an employee with a disabling medical condition. Especially when a company passes over a qualified worker with more seniority in favor of someone with less experience or fewer credentials, a worker may start to question whether their medical condition was the deciding factor.
When companies engage in disability discrimination, affected workers may have the right to file a lawsuit. Fighting discrimination can compensate a worker for the harm caused and may teach the business an important lesson about how it is supposed to treat workers.