Being disabled has many disadvantages and it is also a continuous suffering experienced by disabled people. In addition to the hardships that a person with disability is experiencing due to his/her physical condition, there are times when discrimination against that person happens.
A person is regarded as disabled if one of the following is applicable:
He/she possesses a disability record
He/she is known to be disabled
He/she possesses a mental or physical impairment, which puts a limit to his/her major activities in life which includes learning, walking, seeing, and talking
Persons with Disabilities in the United States
Results of the 2006 American Community Survey (ACS) revealed that in the United States, 30% of the total number of recorded disabled persons are 75 years old and older. It is followed by persons within the age bracket of 65 to 74 years old which accounts for 30.2%.
When it comes to employment, 37.7% of the people with disabilities in the age bracket of 21 to 64 years old are currently employed in 2006.
Law Protecting Discrimination against Disabled Persons in Employment
There are times when people who posses certain disabilities are discriminated even in their workplace. To stop or to reduce the number of instances wherein a person with disability is discriminated, the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) was created.
Employers who have 15 or more workers, labor organizations who have 15 or more workers, as well as employment agencies are forbidden by Title I of the ADA to discriminate against a qualified disabled employee, who is skilled in his/her field.
ADA also does not allow local government and states to discriminate against qualified disabled persons in their services, programs, and activities.
The following are instances that are recognized as discrimination under ADA:
denying employment to a person due to a relationship he/she has with a disabled person
acquiring tests for employment as well as other criteria for employment selection which are not related to the job itself nor vital for the business and that that are likely to eliminate applicants who are disabled
not reasonably accommodating a qualified disabled employee
Meanwhile, an employer cannot discriminate against a disabled employee in:
termination and discharge
promotion
hiring
benefits and pay
other employment conditions
Instead of discriminating against an employee, employers are advised to accommodate employees with disabilities in a good way by doing the following:
provide the disabled employee with an extra medical leave
make sure that the facilities in the company are accessible to people with disabilities
designate the disabled employee to a light-duty or a vacant position
reshuffling of work so that the disabled employee will be able to do his/her job well
placing equipments that will help the employee who is disabled
modifying or changing schedule of work for the accommodation and the advantage of the disabled employee
Disability Discrimination Law Attorney: Facing the Hardship with You
Although ADA, a law which governing discrimination that is protecting the rights of disabled persons, there are still various instances wherein discrimination happens. If you are discriminated due to your disability, a disability discrimination law attorney can provide you with all the assistance that you need.
This lawyer will make sure that you build a strong case against the one at fault.
Source: http://www.ArticlePros.com/author.php?Jan Camille Canivel
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