The American Disability Act for Diabetes

Diabetes diagnoses amount to approximately one million per year in the United States. Nearly 17 million Americans 20 years of age and older already live with the serious disease, according to The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Complications of diabetes can include heart, kidney, eye and nerve diseases. Luckily for diabetics, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities. Due to the disputed interpretations in court, the ADA Amendments Act became signed into law on September 25, 2008, according to the American Diabetes Association, providing diabetics an umbrella of protection.

Diabetes as a Disability

• According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), diabetes is defined as a disability when the disease itself or its side effects limit a person's major life activities. If an employer treats an employee as if their disease limits them even if it is not proven that it does, it also counts as a disability. The Americans with Disabilities Act makes the determination of a diabetes disability on a case-by-case basis.

The Workplace

• Individuals with diabetes can successfully perform all types of jobs, yet some employers may try to exclude diabetics for some positions, such as driving positions, due to fears and stereotypes, though diabetics generally can work without restrictions as long as the disease is under control. Employers may incorrectly assume diabetic employees will not be able to perform certain jobs or may require more sick leave than someone who doesn't have the disease. The truth is, if the diabetes is controlled well enough, an employer might never even know his employee has the disease, according to the U.S. EEOC.

Employee Rights

• An employer may not ask an applicant questions about medical history or medications during the interview process, according to the EEOC, because then it implies that the employee is making a conditional offer of employment. If the employer does make a job offer to the applicant, he may then ask medical questions and even require a medical examination. If the applicant willingly reveals she has diabetes, the employer is only allowed to ask whether or not she would need reasonable accommodations on the job, and what type.

  After extending an offer of employment, the employer cannot retract it from learning the applicant has diabetes; he can only ask further questions about the disease. An employer may only withdraw his offer of employment if it becomes clear that the applicant has restrictions making her unable to perform the functions of the job.

Accommodations

• Employers may need to offer their diabetic employees a private area and break time to check their blood sugar, take their insulin or other medications and to eat, drink or rest during times when their blood sugar is at dangerous levels. They also may need to provide extra leave time for a diabetic employee to treat the disease or receive training on how to control the disease better, and possibly also a modified schedule or shift change. Although not all diabetic employees have a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, employers should try to work with those who either have the disease or are at risk for it, unless doing so provides their business with an undue hardship, according to the EEOC. An undue hardship is defined as a significant difficulty or expense.

Protection

• Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, job discrimination is illegal if practiced by private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies, labor organizations and labor management committees. After July 16, 1994, all job discrimination was made illegal by any employer, state or local government with 15 or more employees. Discrimination in any state or local government activities is prohibited no matter the number of employees. It also is illegal for an employer to retaliate against an employee who asserts his rights under the ADA, according to the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission.