Tag Archives: ADA

Giving Birth to Federalized Pregnancy Accommodation Standards: Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and Providing Urgent Maternal Protections for Nursing Mothers Act

By Amanda Van Hoose Garofalo and Delores Chichi on January 25, 2023 Posted in ADA, EEOC

Modeled after the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC), the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) was passed with bipartisan congressional support as a component of the 2023 omnibus spending bill and signed by President Joe Biden on Dec. 29, 2022. The PWFA expands and federalizes pregnant employees’ … Continue Reading

Eleventh Circuit Holds Websites Are Not Places of Public Accommodation and Rejects Commonly Relied-Upon Nexus Standard

By Erin Sales and Joyce Ackerbaum Cox on April 12, 2021 Posted in ADA

In a win for businesses, on April 7, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held in Juan Carlos Gil v. Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc., that websites are not “places of public accommodation” under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and rejected the “nexus” standard that has been adopted by several other federal … Continue Reading

EEOC Releases Technical Assistance Documents Regarding Opioid Addiction and the ADA

By Amanda Van Hoose Garofalo and Priya Amin on August 11, 2020 Posted in ADA

On August 5, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released two technical assistance documents addressing opioid addiction and employment. The EEOC defines opioids to include prescription drugs such as codeine, morphine, oxycodone, hydrocodone, meperidine, buprenorphine and methadone, as well as illegal drugs like heroin. Employee Guidance The first document is guidance for employees … Continue Reading

State Court Asked to ‘Weigh In’ on Whether Obesity Constitutes an Impairment Under Anti-Discrimination Law

By Jacob A. Bruner on October 16, 2018 Posted in EEOC, Health & Wellness

On Sept. 17, 2018, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals certified to the Washington Supreme Court the question of whether obesity qualifies as an “impairment” and thus a “disability” under the state’s anti-discrimination law. The case, titled Casey Taylor, et al. v. Burlington Northern Railroad Holdings Inc., et al., Case No. 16-35205 (9th Cir. Sept. … Continue Reading

Navigating Through the Smoke: The Intersection of Marijuana Legalization and Employment Law

By Joyce Ackerbaum Cox and Ashley Schachter on December 7, 2016 Posted in ADA, FMLA

Public approval for medical and recreational marijuana is at an all-time high. In November 2016, four states voted to legalize recreational marijuana: California, Nevada, Massachusetts and Maine (although, at the time of this posting, the vote in Maine is subject to a recount). These states join Alaska, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Oregon and Washington, … Continue Reading

The ADA Celebrates Its 25th Anniversary – A Look Back at the Development of the Act

By Anat Maytal on July 31, 2015 Posted in ADA

Twenty-five years ago this week, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”) was enacted into law with its stated purpose being “to provide clear, strong, consistent, enforceable standards addressing discrimination against individuals with disabilities.” Title 1 of the ADA specifically prohibited employment discrimination against “qualified” individuals with disabilities. The ADA created new opportunities and … Continue Reading