Workplace Rights Lawyer

California has strong laws protecting the rights of disabled persons. They're contained within California Government Code Section 12926. That says anyone who employs five or more persons cannot discriminate against a person with a disability, someone who's had an experience with a disability, someone who's associated with a person of a disability, or someone has a record of disability. Disability includes anything that affects one or more major life activities. Certain examples are physical disabilities, cosmetic disfigurement, anatomical loss of a limb or other body part, psychological disorders, or having a history of any of these diseases. It has to affect one or more of the following body systems: the neurological system, the immunological system, the musculoskeletal system, special sense organs, the respiratory system, speech, vision, hearing, the ability to reach, stand, sit, cardiovascular system, the reproductive system, the digestive system, the blood system, and skin, and any type of endocrine system problems. Now, this is protected not only for actual disabilities, but an employer can't discriminate against someone based upon a perceived disability. Major life activity is described as covering a broad range of things. It can be anywhere from just the ability to work, to read, personal care, to lift, to walk, to sit, anything that might otherwise indicate that a person has less than the full capacity to do their job. The law says that if an individual with a disability can perform the essential functions of their job, that the employer must make an accommodation to allow them to do so. There are a number of different items that can be considered as accommodation, including a shortened workday, working from home, or taking time off. Now, an employer has to engage in a good-faith interactive process with an employee. That means that they have to offer, you have to request, and there's a discussion back and forth to see if something can be found that would help the worker achieve their job. But the employer doesn't have to do something that would create an undue hardship. They don't have to create a job. They don't have to go out and spend millions of dollars. But an accommodation could be restructuring so that some of the job functions may be handled by another person. An undue hardship is something that requires significant difficulty or expense when considered against the size of the company and its resources. Unlimited time off is not a reasonable accommodation, nor is reassignment to a different supervisor. You can't ask for a different supervisor as an accommodation. There are other things that you can do, but choosing who your boss is generally not something considered to be a reasonable accommodation. An employer cannot ask about accommodations or disabilities as part is part of the interview process. Only after a job has been offered and accepted can an employer ask whether the employee would require any type of accommodations. There are strict prohibitions against retaliation for asking. Additionally, anyone who makes a complaint or participates in an investigation is protected from retaliation. If it has found that the law is violated, an individual who is affected has the right to bring a lawsuit and to recover certain types of damages. Those include economic damages. It can include non-economic damages such as pain, suffering, humiliation, and emotional distress. Under some conditions, if the employer is what we call malicious, punitive damages may be recovered. I've handled a number of trials in numerous cases pertaining to disability discrimination. If you're having a problem, please contact us at: dolanlawfirm.com.