This workbook addresses the full range of issues and obligations faced by employers when dealing with disabled employees. Additionally, the workbook provides materials for undertaking effective interactive process meetings.

Topics Include:

• The ADA, the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act
  • The ADA
  • The Rehabilitation Act
  • The California fair employment and Housing Act (FEHA)
  • Enforcement
• Who is Covered by Disability Laws?
  • The ADA
  • The FEHA
  • Individual Liability
• What Discrimination is Prohibited?
  • Overview of the ADA
  • The FEHA
• What is a Disability under the ADA?
  • Physical or Mental Impairment Which Substantially Limits One or More Major Life Activities
  • Record of Substantially Limiting Conditions
  • Regarded as Substantially Limited in a Major Life Activity
  • Conditions or Impairments Excluded by the ADA
  • Relationship or Association with an Individual with a Disability
• What is a Disability under the FEHA?
  • Physical Disabilities Covered by FEHA
  • Limits on One or More Major Life Activities under the FEHA
  • Types of Major Life Activities under the FEHA
  • Working as a Major Life Activity
  • Being Regarded as Disabled
  • Mitigating Measures Not Considered
  • Past Disabilities and Potential Future Impairments
  • Obesity as a Physical Disability
  • Chronic or Episodic Ailments are Disabilities
  • Conditions Excluded Under FEHA
  • Temporary Disabilities under the FEHA
• Mental Disabilities
  • Mental Impairments under the ADA
  • Mental Disabilities Covered by the FEHA
• Medical Condition under the FEHA
  • Cancer-Related Condition
  • Genetic Characteristics
  • Testing for Genetic Characteristics
• Who is a Qualified Individual with a Disability under the ADA and the FEHA?
  • Qualified Individual
  • Essential Functions of the Position
  • Examples Analyzing Essential Functions
• Acquiring Information about Applicant/ Employee Medical Conditions and Impairments – the Do’s and Don’ts
  • The Hiring Process – What You Can and Can’t Ask Job Applicants
  • What is a Conditional Offer of Employment?
  • Pre-Offer Inquiries and Examinations – What You Can Ask before Making a Conditional Offer of Employment
  • Physical Agility/Fitness Testing
  • Drug and Alcohol Testing
  • Some Don’ts
  • What is a Medical Exam?
  • Psychological Testing
  • How to Handle the Obviously Disabled Applicant
  • Post-Offer Inquiries
  • Some Acceptable Medical Inquiries
• Fitness for Duty Exams
  • When is a Fitness for Duty Examination Allowed?
  • What Information is an Employer Entitled to Receive Following a Fitness for Duty Examination?
• Reasonable Accommodation
  • Reasonable Accommodation Applies Only to Known Disabilities
  • Standards for a Reasonable Accommodation
  • What Types of Accommodations are Reasonable?
• Disability-Caused Misconduct, Discrimination and Reasonable Accommodation
  • Can an Employer Discipline an Employee for Misconduct Caused by a Disability?
  • Accommodating Disability-Caused Misconduct
  • Alcohol Abuse and Illegal Drug Use
• The Interactive Process/Due Process
  • The Steps of the Interactive Process
  • Union Representation
  • EEOC Interactive Process Guidelines
  • Documentation and Follow up
  • Due Process Considerations (What if the Interactive Process Yields No Reasonable Accommodation?)
• Collective Bargaining and the FEHA/ADA
  • Effect of Arbitration Clause in Collective Bargaining Agreement on the FEHA
• Coordination of the FEHA/ADA and the Family and Medical Care Leave Act
  • Keeping Track of Family and Medical Care Leave
  • Coverage is Different under the FEHA/ADA and FMLA/CFRA
  • How Does the Department of Labor Resolve the Interaction?
  • Family Care and Medical Leave under CFRA
  • Coordination of Pregnancy Disability Leave under pdl, the FMLA & the CFRA
• Workers’ Compensation and the FEHA/ADA—Dealing with the Interactions Between the Laws
  • Overview of Legal Obligations
  • Is a Worker Injured on the Job Protected by the ADA or the FEHA?
  • Managing Workers’ Compensation Claims with the FEHA/ADA Interactive Process
  • What Can Employers Do to Avoid Increased Workers’ Compensation Costs and Comply with the FEHA/ADA?
  • What Can an Employer Do When a Worker is Injured on the Job?
  • Industrial Injury Leave Entitlements for Academic Employees
  • Industrial Injury Leave Entitlements for Classified Employees
  • Temporary Disability Payments for Industrial Injuries
  • Does Filing a Workers’ Compensation Claim Prevent an Injured Worker from Filing a Charge under the FEHA/ADA?
  • FEHA and Workers’ Compensation Remedies
• PERS/STRS Disability Retirement
  • Applicable Laws
  • Eligibility
  • Employee Status During Application Process
  • Light Duty Defense
• Defenses of Business Necessity and Undue Hardship
  • Direct Threat to Health and Safety – ADA/FEHA
  • How to Determine if There is a Threat
  • Rely on Objective Facts
  • Do Not Rely on Fear or Stereotypes
  • Health and Safety defense under the FEHA
  • Undue Hardship Defense – ADA/FEHA
  • Business Realities Defense – Workers’ Compensation
• Remedies Available under Disability Discrimination Laws
  • Title I of the ADA
  • Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
  • The FEHA