Michael Fox (not the actor) writes a nice blog on employment law from the employer’s perspective at: http://employerslawyer.blogspot.com/. He wrote recently about a jury result in Madison, Wisconsin. A jury awarded $2 million to a teacher who sought the simple accommodation of a class 
room with a window. Otherwise, she was subject to crying spells
Executive Sues Jack in the Box
A man in Dallas has worked at Jack in the Box for 32 years. Robert Williams worked his way up to Area Coach, just a few steps below President and Chief Operating Officer. Burt, he was not rewarded for his loyalty. Instead, at meetings, a supervisor would ask if it was time for Mr. Williams’
In Bad Times, Employees Are Pressed to Return to Work Sooner
Its a sign of the times. Employee is out sick and the employer calls to pressure the employee to return to work asap. See story. A woman was recovering at home from a double mastectomy. The 
manager at the crafts store, Michaels, called her several times asking when she could come back to work.
Texas Education Board Passes Anti-Islam Resolution
I try to talk on this forum about employment issues and discrimination in general. Since I am an Iraq veteran, I also discuss the war from time to time, typically simply to note the death of a local soldier killed in Iraq or Afghanistan. So, when a local governmental entity itself expresses some form of
Public Facilities Must be Accessible
Public facilities must be accessible to persons with disabilities regardless of age of the structure. But, if the structure dates to before 1990 and has not been substantially modified since 1990, then accessible features must be “readily achievable.” City sidewalks are a significant issue.
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Many Types of Evidence Help Prove a Discrimination Case
Circumstantial proof is typically used in discrimination cases. Direct evidence of discrimination (ie, an admission by the harasser) is rare.
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Bexar Met Fires Business Analyst
Why would an employer provide grounds for a lawsuit to an employee? It is hard to fathom, but Bexar Metropolitan Water District has fired a business analyst whose warnings about improper accounting practices were supported by a a consultant. See San Antonio Express News report. Gilbert Herrera’s warnings were well-reported prior to his termination.
The Interactive Process Requires Employee to Consider Alternatives
The ADA was amended substantially in 2009. See prior discussion here. With the new ADA in place, disability cases will be more about the accommodation process and less about whether a person is disabled. Workplace Prof discusses a case that sheds some light on the accommodation process. An employee seeking accommodation must present his/her
Preventive Fitness for Duty Exams
Fitness for duty exams are not popular with the workforce. They can be very stigmatizing. But, employers want to know if an employee has issues that could affect business. Most caselaw says fitness for duty exams for unspecified reasons are not justified – they are perceived s a backdoor to discriminate based on disability. But
Reasonable Accommodation Requires More
How much accommodation is enough? There is surprisingly little caselaw on the subject. Most issues arising under the old ADA concerned whether a person was truly a person with disability.
Now that the ADA hs been substantially amended, we will surely start seeing more accommodation issues. In EEOC v. UPS Supply Chain Solutions, we see