Health-related disabilities, pain, and employment: Initial impact of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Conley, Stephen

Affiliations: Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Medical College of Virginia / Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA

Abstract: The primary goal of the ADA is to achieve a work environment without discrimination against individuals with disabilities. The act has encouraged awareness of the abilities of workers with disabilities from across the nation in the largest surge of civil rights implementation since the 1970s. Employers who only a brief time ago were unaware of the concept of job modifications are now beginning to adjust their workplaces to accommodate willing workers. It is obvious from the cases reported to date that individuals with disabilities have been given a strong tool to continue their employment and remain productive participants in society. Prior to the ADA, laws protecting people with disabilities from employment discrimination were only applied to federal contractors under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Several states had instituted protections, but there was no standardized protection across the country for people with disabilities to match the statutory coverage for racial and minority civil rights. Individuals with health-related disabilities are now receiving more defined due process in complaints with their employers. These changes may be tapered very efficiently with the imminent reform of health care systems. The growth of AIDS and the developing rulings surrounding the employment of individuals with this dreaded disease is benefiting individuals with many other types of disabilities.

Keywords: Health related disability, Pain, Employment, Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Work environment, Civil rights

DOI: 10.3233/JVR-1995-5108

Journal: Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 43-54, 1995