Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employers do not have to excuse an employee from performing an essential function of a job as a reasonable accommodation. Several courts have found that a job duty is an essential function where an employee performs it up to twenty percent of the time, particularly where the job description suggests that an employee must be able to perform it. The Eleventh Circuit has recently gone in a different direction. In Brown v. Advanced Concept Innovations, Inc., the Eleventh Circuit held that such a function was not essential, and thus, an employer violated Florida’s anti-discrimination law (which courts interpret consistently with the ADA) by failing to excuse an employee from performing it. While Brown may arguably be an outlier, it reinforces the importance of maintaining accurate and up-to-date job descriptions.
Blog Editors
Recent Updates
- California District Court Rules That Software Vendor Is Subject to Title VII, the ADA, the ADEA
- Pumping the Brakes: New York Seeks to Curb AI Acceleration in Labor Market
- Video: California Governor’s PAGA Deal: What Employers Need to Know - Employment Law This Week
- Act Now: New York Employers Must Provide Paid Lactation Breaks to Employees
- Supreme Court Overturns Chevron—but for Stakeholders, the Impact Is No Cause for Alarm