Harrison v. Benchmark Electronics Huntsville
22 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. C 416 (11th Cir. 2010) (January)
The lower court granted summary judgment to the employer in an ADA claim. The plaintiff was placed with a company as a temporary worker, and he was later asked to submit an application for permanent employment. He took a drug test along with this application, which he failed. The plaintiff explained that he had failed because he had a prescription for drugs related to his epilepsy, and the test was then cleared. However, the plaintiff was soon after informed that he would not be hired because he had a “performance and attitude problem.” There had been no previous complaints about the plaintiff. Plaintiff then filed suit and alleged that he was not hired because of a presumed disability and that the company had done an improper medical inquiry. The Court reversed the employer’s summary judgment on appeal, holding that the plaintiff offered sufficient evidence to proceed with a claim alleging that the refusal to hire him caused damages. It also held that, although an employer is allowed to ask follow up questions after a positive drug test, it could not make disability related inquiries. Whether such inquiries had been made in this case was a matter for a jury to determine.