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Video: Employer Obligations to Accommodate Employees during the COVID-19 Pandemic - Part 2

Video Transcript:

Hi, I'm Jason Klimpl, an employment attorney and partner at Tannenbaum Helpern. And in today's installment of the HRMinute, I want to touch upon an issue that we addressed in our recent employment article concerning employers obligations to accommodate employees in the midst of this pandemic crisis. Specifically, the issue is this, do employers have to accommodate older workers in connection with remote work arrangements and not coming back to the office? And the question is, if someone's of a certain age, is an employer legally obligated to accommodate that person, to allow them to continue working from home? The answer is no, simply because someone's of a certain age, or they're over 65 or over 70, etc., their age in and of itself does not result in employer being obligated to honor or accommodate any specific request. Now, obviously, you might see higher incidence of underlying health conditions in certain age related populations. That certainly is something to talk about. And the issue there is their health condition, not their age. And by the way, the EEOC has said the same thing, which is that an employee's age alone, standing alone, is not a basis to request or have an employer be required to grant an accommodation. I will say on the flip side, though, that employers should not be excluding people from the workplace simply because of their age that could result in an age discrimination lawsuit. Thank you. And join us next time for the HRMinute.

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HRMinute is a vlog covering a wide range of practical HR and employment law tips for employers. Follow @THSH_Employment to receive newly-posted videos.

The content of each HRMinute is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice nor intended to create any attorney-client relationship. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue.

10.08.2020  |  PUBLICATION: HRMinute  |  TOPICS: Employment

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