Of all the different forms of employment discrimination that people hear about in news reports – age, race and gender, for example – one form of discrimination that can “fly under the radar” is disability discrimination. Is this because disability discrimination is less common than other forms of employment discrimination? Perhaps. But, the fact remains that thousands of Americans, including many people in Minnesota, are productive parts of the workforce while living with a disability.
Employees who have a disability are afforded a variety of protections under the law. For instance, an employee who needs to take time off of work to address a medical condition that is due to a disability may be able to take that time under the Family Medical Leave Act. The FMLA allows an employee to take time off of work for these reasons without fear that the employee will lose his or her job due to the extended absence. An employer who violates this law may be held accountable.
Of course, the biggest legal protection that disabled Americans have is the Americans with Disabilities Act. The ADA makes discrimination against disabled employees and potential employees by an employer illegal, and it demands that employers provide disabled employees with “reasonable accommodations” in the workplace.
At our law firm, we know that it is an unfortunate reality that many disabled employees face discrimination from their employers, even as society is shining a brighter light on workplace conditions. We do our best to help our clients who are facing these types of situations. For more information about how we might be able to help with your case, please visit the disability discrimination overview section of our law firm’s website.
