A frequent claim that arises under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and similar state laws is failure by an employer to provide an individual with a disability with a reasonable accommodation. Typically, to support a failure-to-accommodate claim, a plaintiff will assert that he or she has a covered disability, requested an accommodation to help perform his or her job, and the request was denied.
An additional issue that can arise is whether, in order to prevail on a failure-to-accommodate claim, the employee must also show that he or she suffered an “adverse employment action” – such as a termination or a demotion.
While this important issue has not yet been definitively resolved under the ADA, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled recently that under that state’s Law Against Discrimination (LAD), a plaintiff does not need to show an adverse action to prove a failure-to-accommodate claim. Meanwhile, as discussed in more detail below, the U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to review a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit that would provide an opportunity to settle the matter under the ADA as well.
Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC) can read more here.