Disability discrimination in the workplace occurs when an employer unfairly treats an employee or job applicant due to a disability, a disability history, or even a perceived disability. Nevertheless, not all cases of unjust treatment can be categorized as illegal discrimination; the legislation regarding this matter is more complicated. California has two significant laws covering disabled employees: the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the state Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). Although the ADA establishes a national standard, FEHA usually offers greater and more comprehensive protection to workers in San Diego. It is critical to understand the two laws if you feel that you have been discriminated against due to a disability. Doing the right thing can assist you in protecting your rights and seeking just treatment. At Empower Sexual Harassment Attorneys in San Diego, our lawyers are ready to help you understand your legal rights, defend them, and pursue the justice you deserve.

An Overview of Disability Discrimination in the Workplace

Disability discrimination in the workplace occurs when an employer discriminates against you because of a physical or mental disability. Such illegal treatment may be in any phase of employment, such as during:

  • Hiring
  • Promotion
  • Compensation
  • Placement
  • Termination
  • Promotion
  • Remuneration
  • Job placement
  • Termination of employment

It is critical to note that these protections also apply to individuals with a past diagnosis or to those perceived as having a disability. The law also defends you if you have a history of a disability, for example, a past disease that is now in remission, or even when you are simply believed by your employer to have a disability, even though you do not. This implies that your employer cannot make any decisions based on stereotypes or assumptions regarding a condition they think you have.

Understanding What a Disability Entails

The definition of a disability under federal and California law is deliberately broad to safeguard a wide group of people. A disability is usually described as a physical or mental disorder restricting one or more of the key activities in life.

The basic actions that individuals carry out daily are the major life activities. These are among others, vital functions like:

  • Walking
  • Seeing
  • Hearing
  • Speaking
  • Breathing
  • Learning
  • Concentrating
  • Thinking
  • Communicating
  • Working

The definition also includes the functioning of the key body processes, including the immune, digestive, neurological, and respiratory systems.

The Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) in California offers even greater protection than the ADA does on a federal level. One of the significant differences is the level of limitation. Whereas the ADA states that the impairment must substantially restrict a considerable life activity, the FEHA of California only states that FEHA requires only that the condition limit (rather than substantially limit) a significant life activity.

Such a reduced requirement implies that a broader range of circumstances is legally considered a disability under the state law, which provides you with greater protection as an employee in California.

As an example, a disability that would not be regarded as severe enough to limit you under federal law substantially may still be a covered disability under FEHA, as it creates a significant difficulty in accomplishing a major life activity.

The list of conditions that may be regarded as disabilities is long. They are physical disabilities like:

  • Lack of mobility, which requires the use of a wheelchair
  • Amputation of a limb
  • Chronic illnesses like heart disease
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Epilepsy
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Diabetes
  • Blindness
  • Deafness

The legislation also safeguards a vast variety of mental disorders, such as:

  • Clinical depression
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder
  • Bipolar disorder
  • Obsessive-compulsive disorder
  • Schizophrenia.

Even temporary disabilities like a serious injury due to an accident can be classified as a disability provided that their effect on your life activities is so severe over the course of the duration.

Types of Workplace Disability Discrimination

Disability discrimination may have various types; some are obvious and simple to detect, whereas others are hidden and sly. You want to understand how to defend your rights by learning how this illegal activity can be practiced at work.

Direct and Indirect Discrimination

The most common type of discrimination is direct discrimination. This happens when an employer makes a definite and adverse move against you precisely due to your disability.

As an example,  you are seeking employment where you are very qualified, and in the process of the interview, the hiring manager spots your artificial arm. If the manager at the time chooses not to employ you on an unsubstantiated assumption that you would not be able to do the job due to your disability, that would be a clear case of direct discrimination.

In the same way, when your supervisor makes it clear that you are not being promoted because the company is worried about your future medical leave due to your chronic illness, then that is direct discrimination.

On the other hand, indirect discrimination is less obvious. This type of discrimination occurs when an employer adopts a policy or practice that seems to be neutral in nature but affects employees with disabilities disproportionately.

As an example, a firm may have a blanket policy that all employees must be capable of lifting fifty pounds, even in a desk job where lifting fifty pounds is not a necessary part of the job.

Although this policy applies to all, it would discriminate against applicants with some physical disabilities who can easily do the main tasks of the job. This constitutes a type of indirect discrimination since the policy does not discriminate against disabled people directly; however, it provides an unfair obstacle.

Sexual and Other Hostile Workplace Harassment

Another illegal form of workplace discrimination is harassment based on your disability. This goes beyond simple teasing or offhand remarks. Instead, it entails undesirable behavior regarding your disability that is so common or extreme that it forms a hostile, offensive, or intimidating workplace. This may involve offensive jokes, slurs, name-calling, physical threats or intimidation, and mockery. For such conduct to be unlawful, it must be more than a mere inconvenience; it must be severe or pervasive enough to change the terms and conditions of your employment.

Your employer’s legal duty is to prevent and stop this, regardless of who the harasser is. Your direct supervisor, a manager in a different department, a colleague, or a non-employee, such as a client, customer, or contractor, can be the harasser.

Inability to make Reasonable Accommodations

A failure of an employer to make a reasonable accommodation is one of the most prevalent and critical types of disability discrimination. Being a qualified employee with a disability, you are legally entitled to a reasonable adjustment or modification of your working environment to enable you to perform the necessary functions of your job.

If an employer declines to offer such an accommodation without a legal justification, the act of declining to provide such accommodation is discrimination in itself. It is an essential safeguard that ensures that you are not unfairly excluded or removed from your position due to a limitation that can be reasonably accommodated. This issue is so central to disability rights that it will be discussed further in the following section.

Retaliation for Requesting Accommodations

The Constitution firmly upholds your right to defend yourself without fearing punishment. Your employer is not allowed to take any action against you because you have participated in legally safeguarded actions, including seeking reasonable accommodation or submitting a complaint concerning disability discrimination. Retaliation may be in various forms of harmful acts.

Obvious forms include demotion or termination. Less apparent retaliation may consist of:

  • Excessive scrutiny
  • Sudden negative performance reviews
  • Exclusion from meetings or projects
  • Reassignment to less desirable roles or shifts

Any act of your employer that would deter a reasonable employee from filing or supporting a charge of discrimination can be regarded as unlawful retaliation.

What Reasonable Accommodations Mean for You

Disability rights in the workplace are based on the idea of reasonable accommodation. The ADA and FEHA affirmatively and legally require employers to accommodate qualified employees with disabilities.

This requirement only applies unless the employer can demonstrate that providing the accommodation would cause an undue hardship, which is a high legal standard to meet. An undue hardship is more than a minor inconvenience or small expense; it refers to a significant difficulty or cost for the employer, taking into account the size of the business, its financial resources, and the nature and structure of its operations.

The Interactive Process of Accommodations

When you ask your employer to accommodate your disability, the law obliges the employer to utilize what is referred to as a timely, good-faith, interactive process with you. This means that your employer should formally talk to you. They cannot just disregard your request and say no without any explanation.

The interactive process is teamwork. Communication between you and your employer should be done to see possible accommodations that would be effective in helping you to carry out your job in its key functions.

In the process, you might be asked to give information regarding your limitations, and your employer ought to provide you with information regarding the place of work and the demands of the job. The aim is to find mutually suitable and efficient accommodation. Failure by the employer to engage in good faith constitutes the foundation of a legal claim.

Types of Reasonable Accommodations

The reasonable accommodations are specific to the individual, the disability, and the job. It is not an exhaustive list, but it can be broadly categorized into several categories. There are numerous possibilities, and some typical examples can be used to demonstrate them.

  • Work Schedule Accommodations

A common type of accommodation is adjustments to your work schedule. Examples include flexible work schedules for medical appointments, part-time hours if full-time work is not feasible, or regular rest breaks to manage fatigue or other symptoms.

  • Change of Physical Work Environment

Another typical form of accommodation is to change the physical work environment. This could involve installing a ramp or automatic door for a wheelchair user, an ergonomic chair and desk to help ease back pain, relocating your workspace to a less busy and noisy place to aid in concentration, or installing air purifiers for an employee with a respiratory condition.

  • Modification of Equipment

Another essential accommodation is the provision of assistive technology or the modification of equipment. This may include providing a screen-reading program to a visually impaired worker, an amplified telephone headset to an employee with a hearing impairment, or special software to help with cognitive functions.

  • Restructuring Job Duties

Reasonable accommodation can also be restructuring job duties. This could imply redistributing the peripheral or non-essential job roles to a different worker. For example, if a librarian gets a condition that will not allow them to move heavy boxes of books, the non-essential task of unloading new deliveries may be transferred to another employee so that the librarian can carry on with their primary responsibilities of cataloging and helping customers.

  • A Leave of Absence

A leave of absence is an essential accommodation. If you need time off for surgery, treatment, or recovery due to your disability, an unpaid leave of absence may be a reasonable accommodation. Still, only for a limited time, and it does not cause an undue hardship to the employer.

Remember that your employer is not legally obligated to provide the requested accommodation. They, however, need to offer an efficient accommodation that enables you to work.

Proving Disability Discrimination in California

If you feel that you were a victim of disability discrimination, you will be required to build evidence to prove your claim. The burden is to show that your employer acted adversely because of your disability, by a preponderance of evidence.

The Role of Medical Documentation

Although you are entitled to medical privacy, some medical documentation is usually required in a discrimination or reasonable accommodation case. When you ask your employer to make an accommodation, they are entitled to demand reasonable medical documentation to affirm that you have a disability and to know what limitations need accommodation.

This does not imply they have a right to access your medical history. The documentation must be restricted to confirming your condition and how it affects your job performance. This documentation is critical in a legal case as it is used as a formal testimony to prove that you have a legally protected disability.

Gathering Evidence of Discrimination

It may not be easy to prove that your disability drove an employer’s practices, since very few employers will ever acknowledge having a discriminatory motive. That is why you have to be the main detective of your case by writing down all discriminatory actions.

You should maintain a detailed and contemporaneous journal of discriminatory incidents. Record the date, time, and place of each incident. Note down the words or actions that occurred, and anyone present should be noted as a possible witness. Be specific and objective as much as possible.

You should also preserve any physical or electronic evidence. This will contain:

  • The pertinent emails
  • Text messages
  • Performance reviews
  • Disciplinary notices
  • Other written communications that may help you prove your claim

If you have requested reasonable accommodation in writing, you should have a copy of that request and any reply from the employer. Comparative evidence is one of the strongest methods of proving discrimination. This entails collecting facts that you were less favored than your fellow non-disabled workers in the same circumstances.

As an example, when you were reprimanded for being five minutes late to work because of a transport problem caused by your disability, but your colleagues who are not disabled are often late without any reprimand, such a difference in treatment can be good circumstantial evidence of discrimination.

Equally, if you can demonstrate that the reason provided by your employer to fire you was a pretext, that is, it was a fake reason used to conceal the real discriminatory motive, your case will be much stronger.

The Process of Filing a Disability Discrimination Claim

In case of disability discrimination, you can claim justice by taking legal action. California has a specific and obligatory administrative procedure you must go through before you can sue your employer in court.

The last thing you should do is to take a lawsuit. Instead, you have to make a formal complaint to the California Civil Rights Department, which used to be the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, or the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

These government departments have the role of implementing anti-discrimination laws. After you have made a complaint, the agency will usually inform your employer and initiate an investigation of your claims. At this stage, the agency may collect documents, interview witnesses, and mediate a solution between you and your employer.

If the agency cannot solve your case or chooses not to continue, it will close its investigation and provide you with a document known as a right-to-sue letter. The receipt of this letter is an essential step.

This does not imply that the agency has decided on the merits of your case; it just means that you have fulfilled your administrative requirements and are now legally allowed to bring a lawsuit against your employer in a civil court.

Deadlines for Filing a Claim

You must also be very careful of the legal deadlines, or statutes of limitations, in which you must file a disability discrimination claim. Failure to meet these deadlines will probably make you lose your right to take any legal action, no matter how good your case may be.

In California, you generally have up to three years from the date of the last discriminatory act to file an administrative complaint with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD), in accordance with Government Code 12960(e).

The deadline for federal claims submitted to EEOC is far less, usually 180 days after the discriminatory act. This may be extended to 300 days under some circumstances, but you must not count on an extension. Due to such time constraints, you must take immediate action if you feel that you have been discriminated against.

How a Disability Discrimination Attorney Can Help

An experienced disability discrimination lawyer can be the difference when you think that you have been discriminated against at work due to disability. Lawyers do more than just file paperwork; they are your legal strategist and advocate.

Your lawyer will examine all facts, documents, correspondence, medical records, and timelines to establish whether your case fits the legal definitions of ADA and FEHA (or similar local law). They can recognize the vulnerabilities of the employer’s defenses and plot the most viable legal theory (for example, failure to accommodate, retaliation, hostile environment).

Your lawyer will also help you with all the technical and procedural requirements, prepare and submit your administrative complaint to the right agency (CRD or EEOC), meet deadlines, be legally formal, and respond to employer or agency inquiries.

Your attorney also bargains with your employer and insists on reasonable accommodations, fair relief, or settlement,  and, when need be, proceeds to court or administrative hearing. In the process, a reliable attorney protects you against retaliation, guides you on maintaining evidence, and protects your legal rights at all levels.

Because disability discrimination cases often involve complex medical details, strict legal standards, and procedural rules, having a lawyer greatly increases the chances that your claim will be taken seriously, properly presented, and strongly supported from start to finish.

Find a Reliable Sexual Harassment Attorney Near Me

Pursuing a workplace disability discrimination claim may be daunting, in legal and emotional terms, but you are not alone in doing it. California law has robust safeguards that ensure employees receive fair treatment, respect, and equality at the workplace. Understanding these rights is the first step in pursuing justice and re-establishing balance in your professional life. At Empower Sexual Harassment Attorneys in San Diego, CA, our lawyers are ready to help employees who have been discriminated against or mistreated at their workplace. We will hear you out, advise you on your legal rights, and take you through the process humanely and professionally. If you are a victim of disability discrimination in the workplace, contact us today at 619-604-3027 to arrange a confidential meeting and take the first step to protecting your rights.