Atlanta Employment Lawyer Blog

The U.S Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently determined that an emergency services dispatcher who had recurring depression could not maintain a claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) after she was terminated for failing a fitness-for-duty examination.

The ADA prohibits discrimination against “qualified individuals with a disability.“ This includes those individuals with any medical, physiological, or psychiatric condition that substantially limits a major life activity. The ADA also protects certain individuals from discrimination based on an employer’s stereotypes and unfounded concerns about an individual’s medical condition and medical history.

In Wisbey v. Lincoln, Neb., the employee brought a “regarded as” claim, asserting that her employer mistakenly believed that an actual impairment – in this case her depression - substantially limited her ability to perform her essential job functions. Here, the court determined that no claim existed because the employee was terminated for a tangible reason – i.e. her psychiatrist had determined she couldn’t perform the essential work duties, including performing a public safety job requiring alertness and coolness under pressure - and she admitted that she needed leave because of her depression. As a result, the “regarded as” claim could not stand.

Conditions such as depression and other mental illnesses or are not always understood and may give rise to unfair treatment and adverse actions based on the assumption that an employee cannot handled specific job related duties or tasks.

If you are qualified for your job and suffer from any medical, physiological, or psychiatric condition that substantially limits a major life activity, and your employer discriminates against you, you may be able to file a claim under the ADA.