| Our HR team regularly works through clients’ frustrations with accommodations requested under the ADA by employees. The EEOC’s lawsuit against payroll company Paycom demonstrates why we engage in so many questions and “hoops” when evaluating whether a request can or cannot be accommodated. A candidate disclosed during her interview a severe food allergy to onions and was hired. However, she immediately incurred severe anaphylactic shock when co-workers walked near her with onions. Another incident resulted in paramedics having to be called. She was even provided with a private workspace to work in through the company’s lunch hours – but that was just 15 feet from a breakroom where food was usually present. After a month, she was terminated. Her request for work away from food areas or to work from home were not accommodated. She alleges she was told to wear a mask and carry an EpiPen. A company as large as Paycom will have a higher requirement for accommodation than much smaller companies. However, we need to have a well-documented interactive process where the employee’s physician’s request is truly evaluated and weighed against the ability of the company to provide that. Those are rarely simple assessments, and very fact-specific to each situation. So…our Generalist team is not trying to make your life difficult, but to help you minimize what can be significant liability for denying an accommodation that cannot be supported. ARE YOUR EMPLOYEES ENGAGING IN BYOAI? A new Resume Now survey (1,020 employed U.S. adults, May) finds that with employers not equipping workers to use AI, over 3 in 4 employees are sourcing and using AI tools on their own — dubbed “bring your own AI” (BYOAI). Usage breaks down as: 23% daily, 20% a few times a week, 17% occasionally, and 16% rarely. Key findings: – 41% of employees say they lack the tools, training, or guidance to use AI effectively at work – Only 21% have received role-specific AI guidelines – Just 19% say their employer gave comprehensive AI training with dedicated time/resources – 52% say their employer provides no AI tools at all, or only free/public ones One expert warns that while BYOAI shows employee adaptability, unsupervised adoption creates risks around data privacy, accuracy, consistency, and accountability — essentially “security headaches and wildly inconsistent work quality” without guardrails. This ties into a documented gap between AI’s rapid workplace integration and employers’ failure to support it sustainably. A separate DataCamp report found AI/data skills are now as fundamental as writing ability, yet roughly half of surveyed U.S./U.K. leaders say their workforce significantly lacks these skills. We recommend that your company leadership and IT team evaluate the various AI tools and determine which are acceptable for your employees to use, develop a policy regarding its use, and train employees both how to use it and maintain company proprietary and confidential information. WEBSITE PRIVACY DEMAND LETTERS According to Fisher Phillips, employers of all sizes and industries are receiving demand letters, claiming violations of California’s wiretapping law. California businesses have already paid more than $500 million to settle these, and the legislature is considering SB 690 to curb these. If you receive such a letter from Vivek Shah or anyone else, be sure you read this and engage your attorney: https://www.fisherphillips.com/en/insights/insights/did-your-business-get-a-website-privacy-demand-letter-from-vivek-shah . |
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