San Bernardino
Disability Discrimination Lawyer

Whether it a permanent, temporary or intermittent issue, living with a disability means that you are likely to find yourself facing specific challenges. Workplace discrimination should not be one of them. There are legal protections in place to help protect the rights of disabled workers, so if you’ve been the victim of discriminatory behavior as a result of your disability, there’s no reason to simply accept it. An experienced San Bernardino disability discrimination lawyer can help you successfully stand up for your rights and secure the remedies or compensation that you are entitled to.

What Is Disability Discrimination in the Workplace?

Disability discrimination in the workplace means treating applicants or employees unfavorably because they have a disability, have a history of disability, are perceived to have a disability or are associated with a disabled person. It is illegal for employers to discriminate against qualified employees because of their disability when making decisions regarding recruitment, hiring, rates of pay, promotions and selection for training. By law, they have a responsibility to provide disabled individuals who are able to perform the essential functions of the job with reasonable accommodations, as long doing so does not present an undue hardship for the employer.

Disability Discrimination Statistics

Reviewing statistics for 2017 makes it clear that disability discrimination in the workplace remains a significant problem:

• According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, 18.7 percent of persons with a disability were employed.
• In comparison, 65.7 percent of nondisabled people were employed.
• The unemployment rate for disabled individuals was 9.2 percent.
• The unemployment rate for nondisabled people was 4.2 percent.
• Nearly 27,000 charges of disability discrimination were filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
• Workplace disability discrimination was an issue in more than 30 percent of the charges filed with the EEOC.
• Some 1,900 of the charges of the workplace disability discrimination filed with the EEOC were in California.
• More than 35 percent of the charges filed with the EEOC in California involved claims of workplace disability discrimination.

Who Is Protected?

The Americans with Disabilities Act is a federal law that applies to private employers with 15 or more employees, labor organizations, employment agencies, and state and local governments. In the Golden State, workers receive additional protection from laws like the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, which applies to any employer with more than five employees.

How Is Disability Defined Under the Law?

Disabled individuals are considered a protected class, but how is disability defined? While the law makes it clear that the definition of disability is to be interpreted broadly, determining who is covered can be somewhat tricky and can vary from state to state. Under California law, this protected class includes people in the following situations:

• Individuals who have any physiological disease, disorder or condition that substantially interferes with or limits their ability to participate in major life activities like walking, talking, learning, seeing or hearing.
• Individuals who are regarded by their employers as having an impairment that is either disabling or potentially disabling.
• Individuals who have a history of impairment or medical condition.
• Individuals who have a physical or mental impairment that is either permanent or temporary in nature.

What Are Some Examples of Disability Discrimination in the Workplace?

What does disability in the workplace really look like? Sadly, it comes in many forms:

• An employer refuses to consider hiring an applicant because of their disability or medical condition.
• An employer refuses to offer reasonable accommodations during the application process.
• An employer demands that an employee have a medical exam before making a conditional offer of employment.
• An employer ignores requests to discuss reasonable accommodations in an interactive process or refuses to do so.
• An employer refuses to provide reasonable accommodations that do not present them with undue hardship.
• An employer allows disability-based harassment in the workplace.
• An employer passes an employee over for promotion because of their disability.
• An employer fails to grant an employee the leave that they are entitled to, including the leave granted to them under the Family and Medical Leave Act or the California Family Rights Act.
• An employer targets an employee for demotion or termination because of their disability.
• An employer retaliates against an employee for requesting a reasonable accommodation or reporting disability discrimination or harassment in their workplace.

Do I Need to Hire a Disability Discrimination Lawyer?

If you encounter issues during the hiring process or are struggling with problems at work and believe that you have been discriminated against because of your disability, it’s vital that you speak with an experienced disability discrimination attorney as soon as possible. There is a process that must be followed to safeguard your rights. A knowledgeable employment lawyer can explain your options and guide you through the process. They can also assist you with negotiations with your employer or help you pursue a lawsuit. Remedies for workplace disability discrimination depend on the case’s unique circumstances, but they may include back pay, compensatory damages or punitive damages, hiring, reinstatement or promotion, or the provision of reasonable accommodations.

Are you searching for a knowledgeable disability discrimination attorney in the San Bernardino area? Turn to the employment law experts at Rizio Lipinsky Heiting. We’re deeply committed to serving the people of California, and we have demonstrated that by recovering hundreds of millions of dollars for victims of workplace injustices and discrimination, personal injuries, and civil rights violations. At Rizio Lipinsky Heiting, we firmly believe that workers have the right to fair pay and a workplace that is free of discrimination, harassment, and hostility. If you’ve been the victim of disability discrimination in the workplace, it will be our pleasure to support you and your fight for your legal rights. Contact us today to request a free consultation.