Terminated Employee Denied Accommodations Has Triable ADA Claims

An employee was on a flexible work schedule for a number of years to accommodate her disability, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). After being assigned to a new supervisor, the employee was served with written reprimands for attendance and deprived of other accommodations that eased her symptoms, including a flexible work schedule. The employee took medical leave from her job because of the stress caused by her supervisor’s actions and was subsequently terminated. The employee claimed that her employer had violated the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) when it failed to provide her with reasonable accommodations for her disabilities and that it retaliated against her by terminating her employment. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held that although attendance is an essential function of any job, whether a reasonable accommodation, such as a flexible work schedule, will allow an employee to maintain good attendance must be considered by the employer. With the recent implementation of new regulations addressing the ADA, employers must carefully consider whether reasonable accommodations are available that will aid employees in performing the essential functions of their job, including accommodations that will adequately address employee attendance.