Takeaway: This decision reinforces that an employer satisfies its accommodation obligations by providing an effective accommodation — even if less generous than requested — so long as the accommodation allows the employee to perform essential job functions.
Does an employer violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) by denying paid sick leave to attend guide-dog training? Not necessarily, according to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The plaintiff, an art teacher with a rare genetic disease causing progressive hearing and vision loss, requested three weeks of paid sick leave for mandatory guide-dog training. The employer denied the paid leave request but offered a mix of paid personal days and unpaid leave as an accommodation. She sued, alleging violations of the ADA and the FMLA.
The 6th Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the employer. The plaintiff failed to show disparate treatment under the ADA, the court ruled. Unpaid leave was a reasonable accommodation, and the FMLA did not require the employer to allow substitution of paid sick leave when its sick-leave policy did not otherwise cover the absence, the court decided.
The plaintiff’s disparate treatment claim under the ADA failed because she was unable to show her employer treated similarly situated employees more favorably in their requests for paid leave. The plaintiff argued HR routinely granted others sick leave without the same formalities imposed on her,...
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