If you are suffering from a certain mental issue, you must know whether you will be protected similarly as in the case of a physical health issue. There are several things that you may need to consider such as whether you may have similar discrimination if you are suffering from a physical medical condition. Whether your employer can do something to help with your condition. Can you keep your medical condition, physical or mental condition private? Before you frame these questions here’s what you need to know about The Americans With Disabilities Act.
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) offers employees primary protection against the harassment and discrimination faced by them. A disability may mean some kind of physical or mental issue that may impact your lifestyle in more ways than one. Regular tasks that may get impacted include, walking, eating, thinking, sleeping, and work. You may have any such issue endorsed by ADA or may suffer from such an impairment.
Reasonable Accommodation
Apart from having one such ADA-recognized physical problem, the employee must also necessary skills to qualify for the job, including education, skills, and of course not forgetting the experience. In certain cases, an employer with reasonable accommodations are changes that an employer can introduce to perform a specific job. Employers need to provide these reasonable accommodations unless for some reason there may be difficult to implement.
If you suffer from any specific health issue that may restrict any one of the key life activities, your employer can provide you with reasonable accommodations (protected by ADA) so that you can perform work-based activities on the same level as the other employee.
As a Disabled Employee, You Can Continue to Do the Job
If you fall in the category of the disabled employee, your disability may provide you with certain protections. However, you may not be caught by a lower de, employment standard because you have that disability. ADA ensures that you do not get an advantage because of the disability, instead, you get to perform on a more level playing field.
Despite your having a disability, you may continue to perform certain key functions that may not pose any harm or risk to the other employees. If in some cases you are unable to fulfill these conditions, an employer can fire you. The employer can only fire you based on evidence and not myths.
Provide Private Medical Information
When you happen to exercise certain rights as an employee under the ADA, you may need to provide certain private medical information. These are the grounds where an employee may need to provide proper medical information to their employers. An employee may request a reasonable accommodation on the grounds of disability.
An employer asks for the same medical information from all applicants. In many cases, if a person has a certain disability he/she may be unable to retain a job as the person may pose an extra safety risk because of a disability.
The Employer Needs to Keep Your Medical Information Private
Employers need to keep the employees’ medical information under wraps. This usually may mean that your employer needs to take certain extra steps to keep the medical information completely private. It is important to keep your medical information separate from your private file.
Assert Your Rights Under the ADA
The onus on you is to maintain a reasonable accommodation as a disabled employee. However, you have to ask for reasonable accommodation from the right person at your job.
You cannot take the initiative to provide the right accommodations. In such a case it can be either your human resources manager or supervisor. Give a request in writing and explain the types of accommodations you may need based on which accommodations.
Request For a Reasonable Accommodation
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or EEOC lists what defines a reasonable and/or unreasonable accommodation. Usually, accommodations are for employees who are suffering from specific mental health problems and need changes in their work schedules. a change in the method of management, providing leave to an employee, or transferring the employee to a different place and in some cases providing leave too.
EEOC or Equal Employment Opportunity Commission publishes proper guidance and references to provide a proper understanding of their rights and responsibilities whether you are an employee or an employer.