Tag Archives: ADA

Can Your Employer Require You to Undergo a Fitness for Duty Examination?

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The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) considers that employers may request fitness-for-duty examinations under limited circumstances. The legality of such exam requests sometimes can be complicated.

Generally, the ADA requires Employers to provide reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities unless doing so would impose an undue hardship. However, the ADA also permits employers to establish qualification standards that are job-related and consistent with business necessity. In some instances, a fitness-for-duty exam may be necessary to determine whether an employee can perform their job duties, with or without accommodations.

To require a fitness for duty examination, the employer must have a reasonable belief that (1) the employee’s ability to perform his or her essential job functions is impaired by a medical condition or (2) the employee poses a direct threat to safety of others due to a medical condition. The reasonable belief must be based on objective evidence, such as observations of the employee’s job performance or medical documentation. If properly supported, an Employee’s refusal to submit to a reasonable fitness for duty examination can be a basis for disciplinary action. However, if the request is not supported by objective evidence or overbroad in scope, an Employer’s termination of an employee based on an overreaching exam or refusal to submit to such an exam may lead to claims of ADA violations.

Under the ADA, a fitness-for-duty exam must be job-related and consistent with business necessity. In other words, the exam must be necessary to ensure that an employee remains capable of performing the essential functions of their job. The exam must be tailored to the employee’s specific job duties and cannot be overly broad or intrusive.

A fitness for duty exam also should not be abused as a means of discovery into an Employees entire medical history, especially if unrelated to the asserted impairment. The EEOC takes the position that an Employer’s request for medical records must be narrowly tailored to an employee’s job requirements. An overbroad release for medical records or a questionnaire seeking a detailed medical history could be improper, as it might allow the Employer to inquire about unrelated medical conditions or genetic information in violation of the Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act.

In some limited circumstances, however, a fitness for duty exam may be required without having to articulate evidence of impairment or threat. For example, Employees out of work on worker’s compensation or FMLA leave may be required to submit a fitness for duty certification to return to work. Also, an employee requesting accommodation under the ADA may have to provide medical documentation to substantiate the medical condition requiring accommodation.

When Can You Request Work Accommodations Under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)?

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Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employers with 15 or more employees are required to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified employees with disabilities. Reasonable accommodations are adjustments or modifications to a job or work environment that enable an employee to perform the essential functions of the employment position. A reasonable accommodation may include job restructuring, part-time or modified work schedules, reassignment to a vacant position, or acquiring or modifying equipment. It does not typically require the elimination of an essential function of a job, the displacement of other employees, or the creation of a new light-duty job.

The ADA does not require employers to provide accommodations that would cause an undue hardship, which is defined as an action that requires significant difficulty or an unsustainable expense. Additionally, the ADA does not require employers to provide accommodations that would pose a direct threat to the health or safety of others in the workplace.

The purpose and intent of reasonable accommodations is to provide employees with disabilities an equal opportunity to enjoy the privileges of employment when they are capable of performing the essential functions of a position. Some specific examples of reasonable accommodations might include:

• Installing a ramp to make a workplace wheelchair-accessible
• Modifying a restroom so a worker with disabilities can use it
• Allowing a flexible work schedule
• Reassigning a qualified employee to a vacant position

The exact procedure for requesting accommodations under the ADA may vary by employer, but the burden is upon the employee to initiate the request. Employees must request accommodations by informing their employer of their basic disability and the need for an accommodation. The request should be made in writing and should include a description of the accommodation needed.

Upon notice of the request, employers must engage in an “interactive process.” The interactive process involves a discussion between the employer and employee to identify the employee’s limitations and how they impact the employee’s ability to perform the job. If needed, the employer may request additional information from the employee’s healthcare provider to determine the medical and job related conditions. Although healthcare providers might suggest specific accommodations, employers are not required to provide the exact accommodation requested by the employee if there are other effective accommodations that also meet the employee’s needs.