Oakland Attorney Helps Combat Disability Discrimination

Helping you enforce your right to reasonable accommodations

All too often, working people who have disabilities, or who take time off for medical reasons, are fired instead of accommodated. I have been fighting hard for over 30 years for employees whose disabilities are not reasonably accommodated. Sooner or later, most of us end up with some sort of medical condition that makes it harder to work. Employee disabilities are an opportunity for employers to show compassion and offer fair treatment.

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Your legal rights as a disabled worker in California

Disabled workers are protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and by California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act. Employers are required to make reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities if this will allow the employee to work without causing the employer undue hardship. Accommodations can include reassigning some of your job duties, transferring you to a different job, or giving you time off. Employers are also usually required to give employees time off for medical reasons, including time off to care for seriously ill family members.

Common scenarios where an employer violates a disabled worker’s rights

Here are some situations where an employee may have a strong legal claim for disability discrimination:

• You are discharged soon after your employer learns that you have a disability or that you need time off for a medical condition.
• Your employer will not make changes needed to allow you to do your job, such as changing or reassigning some job duties, transferring you, or giving you time off.
• You are fired for taking “too much time” off work, even though you had to take that time off because of a disability or medical condition.
• After you take time off from work because of an injury or illness, your employer will not let you come back to work until you are “100% healed.”

It can be tough, and sometimes even impossible, to find new work if you are discharged because of a disability. However, you may have grounds for a claim based on retaliation and/or wrongful termination.

Contact an experienced Oakland disability lawyer for your discrimination case

If you think you may have a good legal claim for discrimination because of a disability or medical condition, you need someone on your side. Call 415-391-0111 or email me today.