I am a color-blind engineer who works at a printer company. Even though management was aware of this, I was assigned responsibilities which require the ability to discriminate between colors to do well. When I reminded management of this issue, they added another task requiring color vision and assigned 2 other people to help. One of these people only helped a third of the time she was needed, but management refused to correct the problem. There are many other duties of a similar nature but I have not been allowed to trade jobs. Layoffs are coming and I fear that my performance rating will be lower because of my inability to do this part of my job very well. Other than this, my record at the company has been excellent for the 25 years I have worked there. Is there a possible ADA claim here?
The ADA prohibits covered employers from discriminating against a qualified individual with a disability, provided the person is capable of performing the essential functions of the job without an accommodation, or with a reasonable accommodation. The ADA also requires employers to provide a reasonable accommodation to a disabled individual. One common problem employees face in ADA cases is understanding that the definition of "disability" in the ADA is different than one might expect. The ADA considers a "disability" to be a (1) permanent or long-term (lasting at least six months); (2) physical or mental impairment; that (3) substantially interferes with one or more major life activities. If you have an ADA disability, or have a history of having such a disability, or even if you believe your employer perceives you to be disabled, you may have a claim under the ADA. Like all other federal anti-discrimination statues, the ADA requires you to file a "charge of discrimination" with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in order to pursue your claim against your employer. That claim must be filed not more than 300 days after the alleged discriminatory action.
I see two problems with your having a valid ADA claim:
(1) I assume, based on your post, that you are unable to discriminate among different colors. If that ability is considered an "essential function" for your job (and I'm guessing that it is, based on your post), then you are NOT a "qualified person" under the ADA, UNLESS there is a reasonable accommodation available that would allow you to perform ALL of the essential functions of your job.
If such a reasonable accommodation is available, your employer is required to provide it, unless the employer can show that doing so would cause an "undue burden" on the employer.
The first step you need to take is to find out if there is any sort of accommodation that would allow you to discriminate among colors. That's a discussion you should have with your opthamologist or optometrist. You should also talk to an employment law attorney.
