A disability discrimination suit brought by an amputee has been settled for $23,000. Bill Hackney, who has an amputated leg, claimed that his former employer ABCO West Electrical Contracting & Design in Phoenix refused to rehire him because of his disability. In an unusual development, the company's general manager, Brad Swope, acknowledged that a company foreman had violated the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) with respect to Hackney and that the company needed to take responsibility.
Source: Phoenix Business News
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) along with a Kentucky state counterpart outlaws employment discrimination based on a person's disability. Not every condition qualifies as a "disability" covered by the ADA. For a condition to be a "disability" triggering protection under the ADA it has to substantially limit or impair a person's ability to perform a major life activity. If the condition does qualify as a "disability" under the ADA, the employer has a duty to provide a reasonable accomodation for the employee's disability. If an employer fails to provide a reasonable accommodation, it can be liable for injuries the employee later suffers as a result as Robert Abell has discussed on his Kentucky Employment Law Blog: Damages for Pain and Suffering Caused by Employer's Refusal to Accomodate Disability.
