CPA_Practice_Advisor_April_2020 - 14

FEATURE

Mental Health and The Workplace
By Richard D. Alaniz, JD

EMPLOYERS TODAY ARE routinely confronted with employee
medical issues that impact the workplace. Despite the everincreasing focus on issues under the Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and their
state and local counterparts, one employee medical issue that
has received scant attention is mental illness.
The National Alliance on Mental
Illness reports that 43.8 million people
experience mental illness in a given
year. Approximately 10 million will
experience a "serious mental illness"
that substantially limits one or more
major life activities. It costs the U.S.
economy over $100 billion each year
and can take a heavy toll on the person
afflicted as well as on their family and
friends. In many cases co-workers
and the employer are also directly
impacted.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) takes the
position that a mental health condition does not have to be significant or
permanent to qualify as a "disability"
under the ADA. If the condition is
limiting, it likely qualifies. As in the
case of medical issues in general,
many states have enacted regulations specifically regarding mental

APRIL 2020 ■

www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com

disabilities that are similar to those
under the ADA.

MENTAL HEALTH
CONDITIONS
While distinct mental health conditions number in the hundreds,
among the most common mental
health impairments or disabilities
that employers may confront are
the following: Bipolar disorder;
Post-traumatic stress disorder; Panic
disorder; Borderline personality disorder; Obsessive compulsive disorder;
Schizophrenia; and Major depression.
It is reported that major depression is
the largest cause of disability in the
United States.
In California, which defines mental
disabilities more broadly than the
ADA, emotional illnesses and intellectual learning disabilities are included.
This means that such conditions as

ADHD and dyslexia would qualify as
mental disabilities under California
law. The same is likely true in other
states with employee-friendly laws
that have defined "mental illness" for
disability purposes.
Virtually all the conditions classified as mental illness may or do
have symptoms that could impact
an employee's ability to perform the
essential functions of their job. In
many cases the illness manifests itself
in conduct, behavior, or performance
issues that affects their co-workers
as well. Because such mental health
impairments are almost always protected disabilities under the ADA and
similar state laws, an employer must
proceed cautiously in attempting to
address these issues when they arise.
Medical privacy rules similarly require
discretion in addressing employee
mental health conditions.

INQUIRIES TO EMPLOYEES
The EEOC has stringent standards
regarding what and when an employer
may ask an employee about information regarding an employee's medical
(mental) health. The four circumstances under which an employer
may ask questions of an employee
regarding a medical condition are the
following:
* A fter a job offer has been made
and if all applicants in a job category are asked for the same medical
information;
* When an employee has requested a
reasonable accommodation;
* When the employer is engaging in
affirmative action regarding persons
with disabilities; and
* When the employer has objective
evidence that an employee is unable
to perform their job or poses a safety
risk because of their condition.
Employers sometimes become

http://www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com

CPA_Practice_Advisor_April_2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CPA_Practice_Advisor_April_2020