Court Finds PTSD, 'Hearing Loss' Insufficient for ADA Coverage, Reasonable Accommodations

Dallas, TX (WorkersCompensation.com) – When President George W. Bush signed the ADA Amendments Act into law and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued regulations for it a few years later, the definition of disability expanded to the point where 29 CFR 1630.2(j)(3)(iii) details that “it should easily be concluded that” post-traumatic stress disorder substantially limits the major life activity of brain function.

Nonetheless, in Milteer v. Navaroo County, No. 3:21-CV-2941-D (N.D. Tex. 05/03/22), a federal district court determined that a worker’s PTSD was not enough to show that he had a disability that would entitle him to a reasonable accommodation at work.

Remote Work

An information technology manager for a county had post-traumatic stress disorder and hearing loss. During the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, the manager underwent invasive surgery on his throat, for which he took sick time.

When he returned to work, he sought as an accommodation the ability to work remotely. The county rejected this request, and it initially required him to be in the office two to three days per week before requiring him to be in four days per week. All other employees were allowed to work from home.

Following a data breach, the county suspended the manager, after which the manager filed a complaint alleged the lack of an adequate accommodation. A little over two months later, the county terminated the manager, emphasizing that his employment was at-will and that the county was entitled “to end the employer-employee relationship without notice and without reason.”

The manager sued for disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act, claiming that the county failed to provide him with a reasonable accommodation.

Substantially Limited?

To prevail on a failure to accommodate claim, an employee must show that: 1) he is a qualified individual with a disability; 2) the disability and its limitations were known by the employer; and 3) the employer failed to make reasonable accommodations for those known limitations. Additionally, an employee must show that he was substantially limited in a major life activity.

In the manager’s case, the court concluded that the manager did not present evidence to show that he had a substantial limitation in a major life activity.

“In this case, [the manager’s] complaint does not include any allegations that describe the nature or severity of his physical and mental impairments or the difficulties he experiences as a result of these impairments in performing major life activities,” the court wrote.

Instead, the manager made “conclusory allegations” that he suffered from PTSD and that he his hearing loss made it “difficult for him to hear,” which the court did not find sufficient to show that he had a disability that required an accommodation under the ADAAA.

Share This Article: