By: Sam G. Sherman, Esq. A federal district court in Johnson v. Board of Trustees of the Boundary County School District No. 101, recently clarified the circumstances under which an employer must accommodate a disabled employee or job applicant. The Court ultimately found that the employer need not accommodate an employee in obtaining the qualifications necessary to perform the job. Federal law prohibits an employer from discriminating against disabled employees. To prevail in a…
By: Jason C. Ross, HFM Labor & Employment Associate
California and Federal anti-discrimination laws generally preclude qualified employers from discriminating against employees “because of” protected attributes and classes, including certain disabilities. One protected disability under both California and Federal employment law is rehabilitated drug addicts.
In a recent California case, the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals considered the legality of an employer policy forever disqualifying job applicants from employment if they ever failed the employer’s pre-employment drug screen. (Lopez v. Pacific…