Disability & Leave Management

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Before the pandemic hit, remote work was, in most cases, a thing of the future. Concern about the productivity of remote workers caused many employers to resist these arrangements. Employees, they thought, would rather be taking care of laundry or kids than taking care of their duties. Enter Covid-19 – and most employers around the…

Most healthcare employers have been dealing with COVID-19 for a year now. With vaccines widely available for this workforce, we offer five considerations for healthcare employers as they move toward a post-pandemic environment.

  1. Will COVID-19 vaccinations become an annual event?

For years many healthcare providers have required employees to get a flu shot. Are we…

As more healthcare employees receive their COVID-19 vaccinations, questions about when vaccinated healthcare employees can return to work if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms continue to arise.  Coupled with ongoing staffing shortages in the industry, the need for employees to return to work when safe to do so is a pressing concern for many healthcare employers.

To…

As employers in healthcare settings prepare to administer the vaccine to healthcare personnel, they are likely grappling with new practical considerations.  Undoubtedly, one of the most widespread challenges is how to manage employees with potential post-vaccination systemic signs and symptoms (“signs and symptoms”), without unnecessarily imposing work restrictions to the detriment of patient care demands. …

Requiring flu vaccines is nothing new for healthcare employers. However, in light of COVID-19, there is a renewed emphasis and discussion concerning flu vaccines in the workplace.  Healthcare employers are unique because often state or municipal laws regulate when a healthcare employer must require flu vaccinations, permissible exceptions and documentation requirements.  These regulatory obligations are…

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently issued two technical assistance documents addressing accommodation issues under the Americans with Disabilities Act for employees who use opioid medications or may be addicted to opioids. One of them provides guidance to health care providers on helping patients through the ADA interactive process with their employers. You can…

Healthcare employers who believed they were entirely exempt from the FFCRA’s obligations, including providing certain paid leave, based on the Department of Labor’s March regulations should revisit their position in light of a recent ruling from a New York federal court.  Many healthcare providers believed they were entirely exempt from the FFCRA because of the…

A federal court in Ohio has dismissed Family and Medical Leave Act and disability discrimination claims filed by a nurse who was caught sleeping while on duty and fired.  Lasher v. Medina Hosp., et al., C.A. No. 1:15CV00005 (N.D. Ohio Feb. 5, 2016). The court found the hospital had a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for…

A federal court in Texas has dismissed a nurse’s disability discrimination and retaliation claims because she failed to establish she was qualified to perform the duties of her position with or without reasonable accommodation even after the EEOC found the employer’s six-month cap on leaves of absence violated the American with Disabilities Act. Salem v.

Denying a nursing home’s motion for summary judgment, a federal court in Tennessee has allowed a nurse who suffered from impaired vision to proceed with her age and disability discrimination claims and a claim for retaliation. Harris v. MatureCare of Standifer Place, LLC d/b/a The Health Center at Standifer Place, C.A. No. 1:14-CV-64 (E.D.…