6th Cir.: Nissan worker with restrictions not disabled under ADA

Dive Brief:

Because a worker on a Nissan assembly line in Tennessee had provided no evidence of his disability other than his work restrictions, he could not show that he was disabled under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (Booth v. Nissan North America, Inc., No. 18-5985 (6th Cir. April 30, 2019)).
The employee had several work restrictions following a neck injury, but he continued to work on the assembly line for about a decade without incident. Eventually, Nissan denied him a requested transfer to a different position in the factory because that position's duties conflicted with his work restrictions. The employee claimed that this denial was illegal discrimination under the ADA.
The 6th Circuit concluded that the employee had not supplied evidence to suggest that he was disabled beyond his work restrictions, so his claim that Nissan failed to accommodate his disability “fails out of the gate." The 6th Circuit upheld a district court's ruling of summary judgment in favor of Nissan.

Dive Insight:

As the 6th Circuit noted, “EEOC regulations explain that a plaintiff cannot claim a disability by simply demonstrating a substantial limitation in performing the unique aspects of a single specific job.” Rather than point to a single job that he or she cannot perform, a plaintiff alleging a work-related disability must show that the condition precludes the ability to work in a class or a broad range of jobs.

When a worker's condition does satisfy the definition of "disability" under the ADA, the employer must work with the employee to come up with a reasonable accommodation that enables the employee to perform the essential functions of the job (unless to do so would cause undue hardship to the employer, which is a difficult standard to meet).

According to the U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), reasonable accommodations may include:

Modified work schedules or supervisory methods;
Altering how or when job duties are performed;
Telework beyond that provided to others;
Changes in workplace policies (e.g., relating to breaks or leave);
Accessible parking if the employer provides on-site parking to all employees;
Reassignment to another job.

A reasonable accommodation may be fairly straightforward, such as the provision of a chair, or making a policy exception allowing a diabetic employee to eat or drink as needed. HR should train supervisors to ask: "How can I help you?" to help make sure reasonable accommodation requests start off in a positive and legally compliant manner, according to experts.