Vigilant Blog

A: If an employee has a disability, you may have to make an accommodation that will allow the employee to complete the essential functions of his or her job. Working from home could be considered, but only if the employee can actually do the job successfully from home, and even then it might not be…

A: Body odor by itself is not a disability, but your employee might have an underlying medical condition causing the smell or he might be taking medication that triggered the odor—either of which could raise a disability issue. As awkward as it may be, you need to address it with him.  For one, if other…

A: That approach would not be advisable. An employee whose leave under FMLA (or a state medical leave law) expires and is still unable to return to work may well have a disability for purposes of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or state disability laws. The request for additional leave, therefore, should not…

A: Not necessarily. You can require a fitness for duty evaluation if you have a reasonable belief based on objective evidence that the employee’s ability to do essential job functions is impaired or he will pose a direct threat to himself or others. If the forklift driver’s physician wasn’t provided a detailed job description, you…