Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination on the basis of disabilities in places of public accommodations, commercial facilities, and private entities that offer certain examination and courses related to educational and occupational certification. If you are disabled, you cannot be discriminated against as long as you can perform the work duties.
The ADA applies to companies that employ 15 or more people. If you are employed at a company that has that many workers, then you are covered by the ADA.
They cannot mistreat you or treat you differently because you have a disability. If they do discriminate, you do have resources and legal rights available to get control of the situation and to stop the harassment and discrimination. You should maintain documentation that shows the company policies and how procedures were violated.
How To File A Complaint
There are several ways that disability discrimination can take place in the workplace. If you have been discriminated against by your employer, you can file a complaint against your employer.
You will want to first report the incident to the human resources department at your employer, and they should act on your allegations. They are supposed to investigate and work to reach a resolution, making sure that the discrimination does not occur again.
However, if you don’t get a satisfactory response or if the matter isn’t resolved by human resources, you should file a complaint with the government.
You can go online to submit a complaint with the EEOC, or you can call and schedule an appointment at the nearest EEOC branch. By speaking with an EEOC representative in person or over the phone, you are much more likely to gain an understanding of the claims process and if you have a legitimate claim.
Usually, for it to be considered discrimination, the incident must have happened more than once. You will need to provide supporting evidence, such as an employee handbook, employment contract, memos, emails, and proof of what was said or done.
Videos, recordings, images, or written notes that indicate what happened can be useful to your claim. Also, any witness statements can help your claim.
After your ADA complaint has been received by the EEOC, you will be interviewed. They will go over the supporting evidence and then they will investigate your claim. They will work to try to resolve the matter by notifying your employer and asking them to participate in the process.
The EEOC will then take the details provided from both sides and try to determine what happened, how to resolve the issue, and how to keep the issue from occurring again.
If the Disability Rights Section believes that you have been the victim of discrimination because of your disability they will suggest you file a lawsuit to handle the matter in court.
When the claim advances to court, if they determine you were the victim of disability discrimination, they will suggest you file a lawsuit to recover compensation for your damages. You can recover any back pay or lost wages, as well as any other damages that you may be entitled to receive.
How An Employment Lawyer Can Help
If you think that you have been discriminated against at your place of work by a manager or supervisors because you are disabled, you should talk with an employment law attorney who handles disability discrimination matters.
An attorney can help you get your claim underway and will gather supporting evidence and documentation together to prove that you suffered from discrimination.
An attorney will be familiar with the state and federal laws and will know the best way to get your claim underway. With the help of a lawyer, you are much more likely to recover compensation for your damages, including any lost wages that you incurred because of the discrimination.
This could be because of not being hired, being overlooked for a promotion, or not being paid the same as those who are not disabled.
If you are the victim of disability discrimination, complete the Free Case Evaluation Form on this page to share the details of your situation with an attorney who handles employment law cases in your area.
You do have only 180 days from the date of the discrimination to file a claim, and if you wait too long you will not be able to pursue a claim and recover compensation for the incident.
