Employment Discrimination
Plaintiffs in employment discrimination cases often allege a form of personal injury as a result
of the defendant's conduct; the personal injury is usually physical symptoms caused by great
emotional distress. This article discusses a specific type of employment discrimination claim:
disability discrimination.
If you believe your employer has discriminated against you in any way because of a disability,
you should consult with an employment attorney. He or she will advise you as to what kind
of damages are available in your jurisdiction if you successfully prove the employer's liability
for the discrimination. As part of those damages, you might recover for physical symptoms
arising from this discrimination.
To briefly summarize a disability discrimination claim, it is helpful to look at a recent
case in this area of law:
Rodriguez v. Conagra, U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
Mr. Rodriguez contended that Conagra unlawfully discriminated against him because it
rescinded a job offer after Mr. Rodriguez's physical examination in Conagra's hiring
process. The examining doctor reported to Conagra that Mr. Rodriguez's diabetes was
uncontrolled, a finding which plaintiff disputed as unfounded. The plaintiff asked the
court to find that Conagra had discriminated against him unfairly because of his diabetes.
The court discussed the application of the ADA ("Americans with Disabilities Act") to
this type of lawsuit. The ADA makes it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against
a qualified individual with a disability and because of that disability in job application
procedures, hiring, advancement, training, compensation, termination, or other terms,
conditions, or privileges of employment. A "disability" is a mental or physical impairment
which substantially limits one or more major life activity, a record of this impairment,
or even the employer's perception that the plaintiff has this impairment. The plaintiff
must therefore prove the disability, that he or she was qualified for the position, and
that he was not hired because of the disability. Even if the plaintiff proves these elements,
the employer can avoid liability by proving that the plaintiff could not have worked in the
position without endangering the health of safety of others.
The court found that the evidence that Conagra would not hire Mr. Rodriguez because of
his diabetes proved that the employer regarded the plaintiff as disabled (the court noted
that whether plaintiff's diabetes was actually controlled was irrelevant to the ADA analysis.)
The employer conceded that it discriminated against plaintiff because of his diabetes. The
evidence demonstrated that Mr. Rodriguez was otherwise qualified to perform the work, because
the court found no evidence of substantial limitations which would have affected Mr. Rodriguez's
ability to work or the health and safety of others. Thus, Mr. Rodriguez had proven Conagra's
unlawful discrimination, and the case was remanded to the trial court for a determination of
his damages.