Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) Essay

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) “prohibits discriminating against an individual in the selection process” (Moran, 2014, p. 32) due to a potential disability. A disability can be defined as a mental or physical condition that can result in some sort of handicap. As a result, the employer may be required to accommodate the people who are considered as disabled, to help them perform his or her job duties.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is one of the most significant laws in American History. Before the ADA was passed, employers were able to deny employment to a disabled worker, simply because he or she was disabled. With no other reason other than the person's physical disability, they were turned away or released from a job. The ADA gives civil rights protections to individuals with disabilities similar to those provided to individuals on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, and religion. The act guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in public accommodations, employment, transportation, State and local government services, and telecommunications. The ADA not only opened the door for

“Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 Title I does not allow any private employers, local, and state governments, labor unions and employment agencies from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities in job application procedures, firing, hiring, job training, advancement and other terms, privileges, and conditions of employment” (The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity

Individuals with disabilities continually encounter various forms of discrimination, including intentional exclusion from certain work areas, that denies them the opportunity to compete on an equal basis and to pursue those opportunities that guarantees success in the society. To guarantee success there is expectation regarding the relationship between the employer and employee, giving close attention to the various factors that should be considered to make the person with disability successful. This paper outlines the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the terms and conditions covering employees and employers as stated in Title 1. Title 1, as amended by the ADA amendment 2008, states that no covered entity will discriminate against a qualified individual based on disability (EEOC, 2015).

According to Gary Dessler, “employers with 15 or more workers are prohibited from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities with regard to applications, hiring, discharge, compensation, advancement, training, or other terms, conditions, or privileges of employment. It also says that employers must make ‘reasonable accommodations’ for physical or mental limitations unless doing so imposes an ‘undue hardship’ on the business.” It not only prohibits discrimination in employment but also outlaws most physical barriers in public accommodations, transportation, telecommunications, and government services.

The Americans with Disabilities Act, also known as Public Law 101-336, is a civil rights law. It makes it illegal to discriminate based on disability in several different areas of life. It prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in: employment, services rendered by state and local governments, places of public accommodation, transportation, telecommunications services. The ADA covers employers with 15 or more employees, including state and local governments. It also applies to employment agencies and to labor organizations. The ADA’s nondiscrimination standards also apply to federal sector employees under section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act, as amended, and its implementing rules. http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/fs-ada.html

The American Disabilities Act is a federal civil rights law for people with disabilities, comparable to civil rights law passed in the 1960’s for other minorities, not just veterans. It covers employment, state, and local government services, public accommodations, and telecommunications for the deaf. Although an employer can still hire the most qualified person for the job as long as the disability is not used to disqualify a person, the ADA is still needed to protect and lessen confusion for the disabled and normal people. An employer is not required to provide the most expensive accommodation or the accommodation that the employee prefers, but it must allow the employee

According to an overview of the Americans with Disabilities acts, "The ADA is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities "(2015). What this means is someone who has a serious disability such as being in a wheelchair or cannot see will not be judged or turned down from a job. Also, according to “The Rehabilitation Act and ADA Connection”, Section 504 ADA fought for people in regards of the possibility of being discriminated against where section 504 did not put their focus towards that part of the issue. (2009).

Disability Discrimination Act 1995 - This act describes a disabled person as someone with "a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities", which has or can be expected to last for more than 12 months. Conditions that impair an individual's abilities in this way include those that hamper mobility; manual dexterity; physical co-ordination; continence; the ability to lift; carry or move everyday objects; speech; hearing or eyesight; memory or ability to concentrate, learn or

People with disabilities have become an integral part of the workforce. The ADA forbids discrimination against people with disabilities when recruiting, hiring, training, and compensating employees (Sotoa & Kleiner, 2013). The ADA prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, transportation, public accommodation, communications, and governmental and establishes requirements for telecommunications relay services (activities (Stryker, R. (2013). Employers are not allowed to ask employees if they have a disability. The employers are not allowed to ask employees with disabilities to undergo a medical exam before an offer of employment unless all applicants are required to take the same exam (Kaye, Jans, & Jones,

For many years we’ve had an issue with disability discrimination happening in the workplace. In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act was established. Because of this act employees and applicants with disabilities were protected from discrimination against employment. ADA covered all aspects of employment including hiring, pay, promotions, firing, and more. Although employees are protecting under the ADA, in some cases employers still fire the disabled to this day.

This may be the contemplation of demotion or firing or even a lack of understanding on the employer’s part, as seen with the AT&T plaintiff. Federal law cannot protect against marginalization, causing a feeling of unimportance in the workplace to disabled employees because of the unwillingness of acceptance of employers. This lack of acceptance only goes to prove that no matter what effort is put forth by disabled workers, they will never experience the esteem-boosting compliment or praise of their employer that is so generously provided to their able-bodied colleagues. Moreover, the physically disabled are marginalized in the workplace before they are even employed. United States law requires employers to make accommodations to the area or external features of an office if hiring a physically disabled employee. According to the United States Office of Disability, “Employment activities must take place in an integrated

The law also makes it illegal to retaliate against a person because the person complained about discrimination, filed a charge of discrimination, or participated in an employment discrimination investigation or lawsuit. The law also requires that employers reasonably accommodate the known physical or mental limitations of an otherwise qualified individual with a disability who is an applicant or employee, unless doing so would impose an undue hardship on the operation of the employer's

Under Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, employers with fifteen or more employees are prohibited from discriminating against people with disabilities. Furthermore, the employment provisions of the Act require that employers provide equal opportunity in selecting, testing, and hiring qualified applicants with disabilities, job accommodations for applicants and workers with disabilities when such would not impose due hardship, and equal opportunity in promotion and benefits. (United States Department of Labor). If an employer is found liable for such discrimination, the fines can be extremely high. Therefore, it is important to know the definition of disability as determined by the ADA. A disability is a physical or mental impairment that essentially limits one or more of the major life activities of an individual, a record of having such impairment, or being regarded as having such impairment (Bennett-Alexander and Hartman) and the individual should be able to prove such factors to establish a prima facie case in court. Despite of these definitions, a disability is determined based on the effect the impairment

“For purposes of nondiscrimination laws (e.g. the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Section 188 of the Workforce Investment Act), a person with a disability is generally defined as someone who (1) has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more "major life activities," (2) has a record of such an impairment, or (3) is regarded as having such an