DGRead 21.11.01

Virus ADA Ruling May Prove To Be Double-Edged Sword; The Government is Helping Workers!; Sharing is Good!

Virus ADA Ruling May Prove To Be Double-Edged Sword

By: Jonathan R. Mook Questions concerning the intersection of COVID-19 and the protections of the Americans with Disabilities Act — not least of which is the basic question of whether infection with the COVID-19 virus constitutes a disability covered by the statute — continue to play out in the courts. The answer to that question […]

DGRead 21.10.15

ADA Protections for Virus Long Haulers?; Pay Attention to the New COVID-19 Rules; Arlington Magazine Recognizes DiMuro and Ginsberg

How Virginia’s new COVID-19 rules affect your workplace

By Jonathan R. Mook The nature of the COVID-19 outbreak continues to shift, with the so-called fourth wave straining healthcare systems in many communities. Recognizing the changes, Virginia’s Department of Labor and Industry (DOLI) has imposed new coronavirus workplace requirements affecting all employers within the Commonwealth. Building on its existing standard for infectious disease prevention, […]

DGRead 21.10.01

Did You Miss the Stafford Webinar on 9/22?; Has COVID Slowed the Fastest Civil Trial Court in the Land?; Virginia Enacts Enhanced Protections for Disabled Employees; What to Do When COVID-19 Long-Haulers Seek Exemptions from Vaccine Mandates

Virginia enacts enhanced protections for disabled employees

By: Jonathan R. Mook Since the 1980s, Virginia has prohibited employment discrimination against disabled workers under the Virginians with Disabilities Act (VDA). Accordingly, it’s understandable many employers in the state may have overlooked critical amendments to the Virginia Human Rights Act (VHRA) enacted by the legislature this year and signed into law by Governor Ralph […]

What to Do When COVID-19 Long-Haulers Seek Exemptions from Vaccine Mandates

By Allen Smith, J.D. September 20, 2021 COVID-19 long-haulers—those experiencing long-term effects of COVID-19—who seek disability-related exemptions from mandatory vaccination policies are straining employers’ accommodation processes. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA’s) anticipated emergency temporary standard—which will mandate employees of businesses with at least 100 workers get vaccinated or submit to weekly testing—will result […]

DGRead 21.09.15

Be Prepared…Litigation is Often the Ultimate Reality; First Disability Accommodation Lawsuit; Understanding The Gender Dysphoria Legal Background; Award for Nina Ginsberg

4 Takeaways As EEOC Eyes Telework In The COVID Era

By: Anne Cullen Law360 (September 9, 2021, 6:36 PM EDT) — The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s first disability accommodation lawsuit tied to the pandemic sheds light on how businesses can handle the ongoing surge in telework requests without violating anti-discrimination law, experts say. In the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday, the workplace bias watchdog […]

Understanding The Gender Dysphoria Legal Battleground

By: Anne Cullen Law360 (July 12, 2021, 6:49 PM EDT) — Despite some major carveouts in the Americans with Disabilities Act surrounding transgender individuals, federal district courts are increasingly endorsing the claim that gender dysphoria merits protections under the federal anti-discrimination law. Medical research makes clear that the condition can be severely disabling, as the […]