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Employees with disabilities in California are protected by the state’s employment laws. For one, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) protects employees from discrimination, as well as from being deprived of reasonable accommodations. Other related state laws such as the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) provide disabled employees, particularly female employees who are pregnant, are protected by the same rights in employment.

Recently, protections for disabled employees, including pregnant women, have been expanded thanks largely to new regulations. These changes emphasize the importance of the employer’s responsibility to undergo an interactive process with employees and workers with disabilities who might be asking for accommodation in the workplace.

Here are some of the recent changes that expanded the protections of California employees and workers with disabilities:
  • A recent Court of Appeal decision held that a covered California employer may provide a reasonable accommodation by providing an employee an additional leave of absence once the four-month pregnancy disability leave has been exhausted. The said ruling stemmed from a case in which an employee was terminated by her employer when she wasn’t able to resume her work after using up her rights for leave under the state’s Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL) and the California Family Rights Act (CFRA). The employer may have complied with the provisions of the PDL and CFRA, but it failed to engage in an interactive process with the aggrieved employee in knowing if an additional leave of absence is necessary under the FEHA.
  • The new regulations with regard to employees and workers with disabilities that took effect at the start of this year emphasize the need for employers to engage in the interactive process with their employees. In particular, the interactive process must start when such employment situation arises:
  1. An employee or applicant with a known disability requests for an accommodation;
  2. The employer acknowledges the need for an accommodation through a third party; and
  3. When an employee uses up all leaves under existing employment laws related to disability.
Covered employers must make sure that they comply with the recent changes and implement them in their current policies and procedures in employment. On the other hand, employees and workers in California must consult with Los Angeles employment lawyers right away if their employers have not made the necessary changes yet.