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The ADA prohibits employers of 15 or more employees from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities. The ADA also requires an employer to provide reasonable accommodation for a qualified applicant’s or employee’s known disability, unless it would impose undue hardship on the employer’s business, or unless the applicant or employee would cause a direct safety threat to others.1
The ADA's discrimination protections include prohibiting employers from denying equal benefits to qualified applicants or employees with disabilities, including discriminatory allocations of fringe benefits, even if the employers don't administer these benefits.2 For example, employers can't hire disabled individuals only for part-time positions while limiting benefits coverage to full-time employees.
The ADA also states that no person can be discriminated against or prevented from equal enjoyment of goods, services, facilities and accommodations of any place that serves the public because they are disabled. This includes hotels, restaurants, theaters, retail sales service establishments and any other place of employment or public access. The ADA requires these places to be physically accessible to people with disabilities.3
Generally, the ADA only applies to employers with 15 or more employees. However, if one employer is so interconnected with another employer that the two form an “integrated enterprise,” and the integrated enterprise collectively has at least 15 employees, employees can bring ADA claims against an employer using the integrated enterprise doctrine.4
1. 42 U.S.C. secs.12111-12112
2. 29 CFR sec. 1630.4(f)
3. 42 U.S.C. secs. 12181-12182
4. Amy Buchanan v. Watkins & Letofsky, LLP, 30 F.4th 874 (2022)