Meggie Gentzen, Partner
Haley Spiewak, Associate
The Sixth Circuit recently ruled that fast-casual chain restaurant, Chicken Salad Chick, was not required to offer a seated job position for a job applicant under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The plaintiff applied for the fast-paced cashier-service role which had many responsibilities, such as operating a point-of-sale system, stocking the restaurant’s drink station and refrigeration unit, taking food from the prep window, preparing beverages and delivering those items to the customers, and maintaining cleanliness of the restaurants.
During her interview, plaintiff disclosed she had difficulty standing for long periods of time and would require an unspecified amount of rest while working due to the arthritis in her knees. The Kentucky Chicken Salad Chick location hired plaintiff on the spot. In her onboarding materials, plaintiff indicated she would need to “sit down when needed” or “sit and work.”
When she arrived for her first day, management met with plaintiff to discuss the necessary accommodation and obtained a note from her doctor. Ultimately, plaintiff sought an accommodation where she “could…stand for ten minutes at a time and then would need to sit for five minutes…”
The Chicken Salad Chick’s Vice President of Human Resources informed plaintiff that the restaurant could not accommodate her request and did not have a position where she could continually sit.
Plaintiff sued the company, alleging violations of the ADA for failing to afford her requested accommodation and refusing to engage in an interactive process. The Sixth Circuit upheld the district court’s grant of summary judgment, finding plaintiff did not satisfy her initial burden of showing that her proposed accommodation was objectively reasonable, based on the essential requirements of the position. Therefore, the restaurant was under no obligation to engage in the interactive process, as plaintiff’s accommodation request was not reasonable. This ruling is beneficial for employers.
If you have questions specific to your company, please contact Fox Smith, LLC Employment Team at 314-588-7000, mgentzen@foxsmithlaw.com, or hspiewak@foxsmithlaw.com.