Free Custom «The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)» Essay Paper

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 requires that employers guarantee a reasonable accommodation for a qualified employee or an applicant with a disability. The regulation can be applied in respect of the employers who can provide a workplace for 25 or more employees, including state and local authorities, employment agencies and labor organizations.

The ADA is valid for people with different types of disability, namely physical or mental disability that limits life activities, etc. An applicant with a disability can be given a task to perform certain functions with or without a reasonable accommodation. The reasonable accommodation means accessible and usable facilities, modifying of the work schedules, reassignment to another available position, adjusting the equipment, policies for the comfortable use as well as providing readers or interpreters if needed (The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission n.pag.).

The ADA itself covers 5 major aspects: employment, public accommodations, transportation, state and local government operations, telecommunications relay services (Department of Justice n.pag.). According to the Employment part of the ADA, the employer has the right to fire or reject employees presenting a threat to the other employees at the workplace as well as in the case of drugs possession. The employees with disabilities have the right to be treated equally regardless their state and may take legal actions to stop discrimination. All claims are to be filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. As for religious organizations, they may demand the applicants to confirm their religious views; they also may prefer their members to be hired. The Second Title of the ADA also defines public accommodation regulations for people with disabilities. First of all, hospitals, parks, restaurants, and hotels are considered public accommodations. The exceptions are private clubs and religious organizations. All the constructions in buildings must be designed in a way they become accessible for people with disabilities. Furthermore, appropriate services are to be provided for the individuals with speech or vision impairments. All public facilities must have accessible alterations; this includes the elevators or any kind of fixed route shuttles. Individuals with disabilities may turn to the court in order to stop discrimination. Unfortunately, the cases requiring money refunds cannot be satisfied. The complaints can be filed with Attorney General. The Transportation title of the ADA states that all new buses, rail vehicles, vans, and stations have to be accessible. Moreover, the transit authorities are to provide another kind of special transportation to those who cannot use fixed route buses, unless it would be a burden. All the complaints are to be filed with the Department of Transportation. Otherwise, the individuals may bring private lawsuits. As for the state and local government operations, they may not discriminate qualified individuals. Any kind of government service or communication must be accessible. The Federal Agencies file these complaints according to the ADA regulations. The companies providing communication services must also provide special devises for people with corresponding disabilities such as voice dial devices or telecommunication devices for the deaf or people with minor hearing disabilities. The claims are filed with the Federal Communications Commission (U.S. Department of Justice, n.pag.). The Department of Justice can receive civil penalties in the amount of $55000 for the first violation and up to $110000 for the following ones, as stated in the Third Title of the ADA.