Workers With Disabilities INSY 3021 Auburn University Spring 2006

The Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) Makes it unlawful to discriminate in employment against a qualified individual with a disability Designed to prevent discrimination against individuals with disabilities in:  State and local government services  Public accommodations  Transportation  Telecommunications  Private businesses that have 15 or more employees

What Employment Practices are Covered Under ADA ADA makes it unlawful to discriminate in employment practices such as:  Recruitment  Promotion  Pay  Training  Hiring  Leave  Firing  Lay–offs  Job Assignments  Benefits and…  All other employment related activities

Who is Protected Under ADA? A person with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity Substantial impairment affecting  HearingSeeing  SpeakingBreathing  WalkingPerforming Manual Tasks  Learning Working  Caring for Oneself

Who is Protected Under ADA? Disabled individual must be qualified to perform essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation Must satisfy job requirements for  Education  Employment Experience  Skills  Licenses  Other job-related qualification standards

Essential Functions Basic job duties that an employee must be able to perform with or without reasonable accommodation. Factors that can determine if a function is essential:  Whether the reason the positions exists is to perform that function  The number of other employees available to perform the function or among whom the performance of the function can be distributed  The degree of expertise or skill required to perform the function

Any change or adjustment to a work environment that permits a qualified applicant or employee with a disability to:  (1) participate in the job application process  (2) perform essential functions of the job  (3) enjoy the benefits and privileges of employment Reasonable Accommodation

Examples  Acquiring or modifying equipment or devices  Job restructuring  Part-time or modified work schedules  Reassignment to a vacant position  Adjusting/modifying exams, training, materials or policies  Providing readers / interpreters  Making the workplace readily accessible and usable

Unreasonable Accommodation Accommodation that would impose undue hardship on the employer. Determined by the following:  Overall size of the employers operation with respect to the number of employees  Number and type of facilities  Size of the companies budget  Type of operation (composition / structure of workforce)  Nature and cost of needed accommodation

Role of Safety and Health Professional Develop functional job descriptions Liaisons with EEO manager, HR department, and Medical Department for employee placement Conduct JSA based on limitations of disabled employee Make recommendation for safety modifications to  Machine tools  Processes / procedures  Existing facilities  Workplace environment

Emergency Medical Services and First Aid- Specialized training or on-site medical support may also be beneficial and should be based on workers' medical needs Ergonomics - ergonomic principles should be applied to fit jobs to disabled workers; workers with cognitive impairments should be particularly vigilant. Such workers may not associate the onset of an injury with their job and may have difficulty communicating that a problem exists. Protecting Workers with Disabilities

Chemical and Physical Agents - Workers with developmental disabilities frequently have concomitant medical conditions. Some medical conditions and medications interact with occupational exposures and increase a person's susceptibility to adverse health effects. Hazard Communication Training – training should be tailored to the needs and conditions of workers with mental impairments. Suggested ways to accommodate training needs included spending more time in training; breaking the description of a job into small, clearly defined steps; instructing in clear, basic language; and developing pictures or diagrams showing job sequences to help teach tasks.

Protecting Workers with Disabilities Warnings / Alarms - When a forklift without a warning device is in use, a signal person should help the driver warn nearby workers. Emergency alarms should be selected that will not cause workers to have seizures. In an emergency, staff members should be prepared to warn workers who are blind, deaf, or both blind and deaf for whom visual or audible warnings would be ineffective

Protecting Workers with Disabilities Warning signs - Employers should ensure that warning signs are understood by employees with developmental disabilities. The following guidelines for selecting warning signs were developed from discussions with people who have had experience communicating with workers with moderate and severe mental retardation.  Select signs with uncomplicated, easy-to-understand figure instead of words.  Use signs conforming to community standards whenever possible (e.g. a stop sign may keep workers from entering an off-limits area)  Do not combine words and pictures on the same sign. Putting these communication methods together may be confusing.  Show desired behaviors  Use attention-getting colors over black-on-white signs.

Protecting Workers with Disabilities Workplace Violence  Aggressive and violent behaviors may be manifested by people with some systemic disorders or with some neurological disorders (e.g., head trauma, degenerative dementias, and some forms of epilepsy, Tourette Syndrome).  Toxic levels of some medications and chemicals are associated with mental confusion and fighting.  Training should be provided in managing aggressive behavior with respect to the disability. Workers with disabilities should receive violence- prevention training in personal safety skills and assertiveness

Questions & Comments