The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits disability discrimination in employment. Disability is defined as: “an impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a record of such an impairment, or being regarded as having such an impairment.” It includes both physical and mental impairments. Under the ADA, covered employers (those who have more than 15 employees) must reasonably accommodate any disabled employee, so long as the accommodation does not impose an undue hardship on the employer.
When the ADAAA went into effect, the ADA’s definition of disability was significantly broadened. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which oversees ADA enforcement, has stated: “The effect of these changes is to make it easier for an individual seeking protection under the ADA to establish that he or she has a disability within the meaning of the ADA.” The practical effect of this broadened definition has been to allow employees to skip almost completely the question of whether the employee is actually disabled.