San Diego associate Brandon Saxon co-authored an article for the November/December 2011 issue of Municipal Lawyer Magazine titled “The EEOC’s Final Regulations Under the ADAAA: How These Changes Will Affect Internal Policies and Procedures of Municipalities and Other Employers.”
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 was enacted to prohibit discrimination based on disability. In 2008, President George W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act Amended Act (ADAAA) with the goal of focusing less on the definition of discrimination and more on whether employers were providing reasonable accommodations and refraining from discrimination. The definition of “disability” under the Amended Act was to be interpreted in favor of broad coverage of individuals.
In May 2011, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued regulations interpreting the ADAAA, which effectively lowered the bar for establishing the existence of a disability with the meaning of the ADA and focused more on reasonable accommodation. Because of these new regulations, it is of utmost importance for employers to be aware of the significantly altered legal landscape and amend their polices and procedures accordingly.
To read the complete article, please click here.