Don’t go easy – ADA case reveals risk of lenient performance evaluations

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Abstract: Employers that accommodate a worker under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) may feel obliged to “go easy” on that employee during performance evaluations. But, as revealed in one case, failing to exercise objectivity in a job review could leave the employer vulnerable in a lawsuit. A disabled employee with good performance reviews obtained a new position in her agency. She was then judged to be error-prone and was terminated within the probationary period. Was she the victim of discrimination, or had she earlier received lenient evaluations? This article examines the court’s ruling. Whitfield v. State of Tennessee, No. 09-6488, March 25, 2011 (6th Cir.)