Legal Question in Disability Law in California

Employers have the right to have to set job qualifications and expectations. Our disability discrimination laws are intended to permit employees with qualified disabilities to have an equal opportunity to meet those job requirements with the help of reasonable accommodations provided by the employer. But they do not require the employer to lower their expectations and qualifications for persons with disabilities.

There is an interactive process that is required of both the employer and employee to try to identify the employee's limitations and what the employer can do to help them meet the essential functions of the job. You should take advantage of that process and initiate a dialogue to discuss what, if any, options are available. It is not likely that making a productivity exception will be one of those options.

No. While employers must 'reasonably accommodate' your disability, that still means you have to be able with accommodation to do all the reasonably necessary functions of the job. If the job requires everyone to make 10 widgets an hour, and you can only make 5, that is not reasonable compliance on your part. Every case is fact specific. The closer you are to full performance and compliance, the less grounds for termination.