Memo

Professor Dan Eaton MGT 464 16 April 2014 MEMO Date: April 16, 2014 To: Human Resources Manager Re: Termination of employee for violating the company’s workplace violence rules. Before I had a chance to speak to the employee, Steve Russell, about the company’s decision to terminate him for violating the workplace violence rules, he informed me has been diagnosed with a disability that affects his ability to control his temper. This is the first time we have been informed of Mr. Russell’s disability, and therefore must take into consideration the risks and benefits of proceeding with the termination. There are several aspects that must be addressed before I can give my final recommendation: the disciplinary action that follows a violation of a workplace conduct standard, the legal requirements to make reasonable accommodations, and the possible risk of a lawsuit if the employee feels he was fired because of a disability discrimination. The EEOC gives the following guidelines when dealing with this type of situations: the ADA generally gives employers wide latitude to develop and enforce conduct rules. The only requirement imposed by the ADA is that a conduct rule be job-related and consistent with business necessity when it is applied to an employee whose disability caused him or her to violate the rule. Certain conduct standards that exist in all workplaces and cover all types of jobs will always meet this standard, such as prohibitions on violence, threats of violence, stealing, or destruction of property.1 Our policy is to maintain a workplace free of violence or threats of violence and because this conduct standard is directly related with business necessity there is no violation of the ADA. Under the ADA, we as an employer are free to discipline an employee with a disability for violating a workplace conduct standard if the misconduct resulted from a disability.2 The benefit of this EEOC guideline is that Mr. Russell’s circumstances fall into this category....