Seemingly Innocent Blanket Attendance Policies May Violate ADA
On four separate occasions, the EEOC has sued Autozone for violating the ADA. Most recently, the EEOC claims that Autozone’s attendance policy violates the ADA because it fails to take into account potential absences due to disabilities.
Autozone’s Seemingly Innocent Policy:
Autozone’s attendance policy appears to be neutral on its face. Autozone applies points to employees who are not at work at their scheduled time regardless of the reason for the absence. Every employee who receives 12 points is subject to termination.
ADA Protection:
The Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) protects employees who are disabled from being discriminated against because of their disability. The ADA also requires employers to incorporate reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities. What constitutes a “reasonable accommodation” depends on the individual circumstances.
According to the EEOC, Autozone’s attendance policy violates the ADA because it fails to take into account absences that may be related to disabilities like individuals with type II diabetes who may need to leave early due to insulin reactions.
Employment Take Away:
Even though policies apply equally to all employees whether disabled or not, the policy may still violate the ADA if it fails to consider if the policy may need to be subject to a reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities. If you are an employer who enforces attendance policies at work or an employee with a disability who has been disciplined for violating an attendance policy, you should seek the advice of counsel.
For more information on the EEOC’s lawsuit against Autozone, see: http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/5-9-14a.cfm
