Can an Employer Fire You for Taking Prescribed Medication
Past Jennifer L. Mora
Seyfarth Synopsis : The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently settled lawsuits with ii employers it claims violated the Americans with Disabilities Human activity after rejecting a job bidder and terminating an employee based on their prescription drug use.
The opioid crisis is dominating the news. And, employers have reason to exist concerned. According to the Agency of Labor Statistics, overdoses from the non-medical apply of drugs or alcohol while on the job increased from 165 in 2022 to 217 in 2016, a 32-percent increment. That same report showed that overdose fatalities have increased by at to the lowest degree 25 percent annually since 2012. Further, the U.S. Centers for Affliction Control recently stated that use of prescription opioids tin can result in serious issues with habit and that in 2014, nigh two million Americans either abused or were dependent on prescription opioid pain relievers.
Notwithstanding, employers should tread carefully when addressing whatsoever prescription drug apply in the workplace. It has long been the case that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and state disability discrimination laws provide protections to applicants and employees taking prescription medication, including opioids, and regulate the right of an employer to inquire about such use. Two recent settlements with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) highlight a few mutual bug facing employers.
The Settlements
In one case, the EEOC brought suit against a pre-school that allegedly terminated an afterschool teacher after he disclosed his prior opioid addiction and his participation in a supervised medication-assisted treatment plan. As role of his treatment, he was legally prescribed Suboxone, which is a prescription used to care for adults who are dependent on, or addicted to, opioids. The EEOC claimed the school terminated the instructor 30 minutes into his commencement piece of work solar day because of his utilise of this medication. The EEOC claimed that the failure of the schoolhouse to conduct an individualized cess to determine what, if whatsoever, impact the drug had on the instructor'southward ability to perform his job violated the ADA. Every bit part of the settlement, which required a $five,000 payment to the teacher, the EEOC required the school to, among other things:
- Improve its written drug use policy to include a articulate and specific exclusion to the policy for individuals who use legally-obtained prescription medication in a lawfully-prescribed manner.
- Create an ADA-compliant procedure for conducting an individualized cess of an employee who is enrolled in any class of alcohol, drug, or illegal substance rehabilitation program in order to determine whether the employee can safely perform the essential functions of his or her position with or without reasonable adaptation.
In some other case, the EEOC alleged the employer withdrew an applicant'due south job offer based on a positive drug test result for prescription medication. The EEOC too alleged the employer maintained an unlawful policy requiring all employees to study if they were taking any prescription and nonprescription medication. Both actions, co-ordinate to the EEOC, violated the ADA. The parties settled for $45,000, with a requirement that the employer adopt visitor-wide policies to prevent future hiring issues under the ADA and simply require employees to written report prescription medications if the employer has a "reasonable suspicion" that the medication may be affecting performance.
Takeaways for Employers
These settlements serve as a reminder that employers should avoid making adverse decisions based on misperceptions or a lack of information about the effect of lawful prescription drug use on their employees' ability to perform their job duties. In general, employees have a protected right to apply prescribed controlled substances and come to piece of work unless such use creates an undue adventure of harm or presents a prophylactic issue. Moreover, employers should have precautions before implementing blanket drug-testing policies that do non business relationship for the demand nether the ADA to engage in an interactive process with individuals taking prescription medications and, if necessary, provide reasonable accommodations. Employers besides should consider revising any workplace policy that requires employees to disembalm their prescription medication employ, unless there is reason to believe the medication may bear upon performance, or otherwise suggests that employees taking such medication will be treated in a certain mode without regard to whether their drug use impacts their work.
For more data on this topic, please contact the author, your Seyfarth Attorney, or any member of Seyfarth Shaw's Workplace Policies and Handbooks Team or the Absence Direction and Accommodations Team.
Source: https://www.laborandemploymentlawcounsel.com/2018/06/eeoc-scrutinizes-employer-policies-regarding-prescription-drug-use/
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