The Americans with Disabilities Act does not preclude employees from receiving a reasonable accommodation even if they are able to perform a job’s essential functions without one, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled March 25.
In Tudor v. Whitehall Central School District, a teacher sued her employer after it refused to give her 15-minute breaks to address her PTSD. The teacher acknowledged that, with “great duress and harm,” she could perform the job’s essential functions without the breaks. “Accommodations that are not strictly necessary for an employee’s performance of essential job functions may still be reasonable and therefore required by the ADA,” the Second Circuit held. It stated that the ADA defines a “qualified individual” as an individual who can perform the job’s essential functions, “with or without reasonable accommodation,” and observed that the ADA plainly directs employers to make “reasonable accommodations” rather than necessary accommodations.
The Second Circuit noted that several other circuits agree with its interpretation of the ADA, and that if Congress wanted employers to grant only necessary accommodations, the statute would have said so.
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