NCJ Number
115483
Journal
Labor Law Journal Volume: 40 Issue: 1 Dated: (January 1989) Pages: 3-11
Date Published
1989
Length
9 pages
Annotation
Based on the U.S. Supreme Court decision in School Board of Nassau County, Fla. v. Arline and the decision of the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Chalk v. United States District Court along with the Civil Rights Restoration Act (CRRA), it is clear that the courts and the U.S. Congress consider that persons with AIDS or AIDS-related medical conditions are protected from employment discrimination under handicap discrimination law.
Abstract
'Arline' held that a school teacher afflicted with contagious tuberculosis was a 'handicapped individual' within the meaning of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Relying on 'Arline' the 'Chalk' court ruled that a teacher with AIDS was handicapped and qualified for employment within the meaning and coverage of Federal handicap discrimination law. CRRA amends the Rehabilitation Act to provide that the term 'handicapped individual' does not include persons who, by reason of a contagious disease or infection, threaten the safety or health of others or are unable to perform their job duties. It is foreseeable that persons with AIDS or other infectious diseases will be protected by the amended act as long as their condition does not threaten others, and they are able to work. Employers covered by the act must recognize that employees afflicted with or regarded as having AIDS may rely on the act's prohibition of employment discrimination to challenge and remedy adverse employment actions. 29 footnotes.