Family and Medical Leave Act (Part 3)
Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to private employers with 15 or more workers and all local and state government agencies. Employees must have worked 20 or more weeks of the current or preceding calendar year to be eligible.
What is determined to be a "disability" under the ADA may also meet the FMLA requirements for a serious health condition. If an employee's impairment qualifies as both, the ADA and FMLA leaves run concurrently.
While these two definitions must be considered separately, the major difference between them is the extent of the impairment: A serious health condition under the FMLA is one that temporarily prevents the employee from performing the functions of his or her current job, whereas a disability under the ADA limits one or more "major life activities" on an ongoing basis.
Under the ADA, employers are required to make "reasonable accommodations" for qualified disabled individuals. Because leaves of absence are considered one such accommodation, an employee may continue to be eligible for leave - provided it does not cause undue hardship (by way of disruption or expense) for the employer - even after his or her FMLA entitlement is exhausted. Unlike the FMLA, there is no maximum time period for leave or other accommodations under the ADA.
While the FMLA allows a company to reinstate an employee to the same or equivalent job, an employer's responsibilities in terms of accommodating disabled workers under the ADA is strictly in relation to the same job he or she held before the impairment.
If, as a reasonable accommodation under the ADA, a disabled employee is reduced to a part-time work schedule, his or her employer is not required to continue his or her health coverage if such benefits are not provided to other part-time workers. On the other hand, if an employee works a reduced work schedule under the FMLA, the employer must maintain his or her group health benefits until the equivalent of 12 weeks of leave is exhausted.
Temporary impairments such as broken bones, pregnancy, and non-chronic illnesses - while not requiring leave or special accommodations under the ADA - may qualify for FMLA entitlement.
Implications
The interplay between the laws described in this article is one that HR folks and employment attorneys struggle with on an all-too-frequent basis. As employers can be held separately liable for violations of each of these statutes, it is important that each instance of extended absence be
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