CRCM practice question 23 of 35

Bob’s wife is HIV-positive due to a blood transfusion during an appendectomy 15 years ago. She is not yet sick, but takes medication to prevent the…

Bob’s wife is HIV-positive due to a blood transfusion during an appendectomy 15 years ago. She is not yet sick, but takes medication to prevent the onset of AIDS. Bob occasionally needs to take time off from work to take her for testing at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore. Because of complaints about Bob’s exposure to this disease, employees have asked HR to limit his contact with them and with customers. The bank has asked Bob not to eat in the lunchroom with the other employees and has placed Bob in a position where he has limited customer contact. Does this company have any potential ADA liability?

Answer options

A: No. Bob’s exposure to HIV could endanger other employees and customers

B: No. Because the hiring manager does not know that Bob actually has HIV or AIDS, there is no liability

C: Yes. Because the manager has associated Bob with this disease, the “associated with” rule applies Correct answer

D: Yes. Because the manager has regarded Bob as having a disability, he has been “regarded as” disabled and the ADA applies

Correct Answer:

C. Yes. Because the manager has associated Bob with this disease, the “associated with” rule applies

Explanation

The bank has potential liability under the ADA's "association" provision. This provision prohibits employment discrimination against a person, whether or not they have a disability, because of their known relationship or association with an individual with a disability. In this case, the bank took adverse actions against Bob (isolating him from coworkers and customers) based on unfounded fears and stereotypes about his wife's HIV-positive status. The bank's actions are not based on Bob's qualifications or ability to perform his job but on his association with a person with a known disability.

Why Incorrect

A. This is incorrect because HIV is not transmitted through casual workplace contact. Acting on such unfounded fears is a basis for a discrimination claim.
B. The bank's liability is established by its discriminatory actions based on the known association, regardless of whether Bob himself has a disability.
D. "Regarded as" disabled applies if the employer believes the employee has a disability. Here, the bank is acting because of the wife's disability, making "association" the more precise violation.

References

1. U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Questions & Answers About the Association Provision of the ADA. (2005). Retrieved from eeoc.gov.

2. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. § 12112(b)(4). This section explicitly prohibits "excluding or otherwise denying equal jobs or benefits to a qualified individual because of the known disability of an individual with whom the qualified individual is known to have a relationship or association."

3. Code of Federal Regulations, 29 C.F.R. § 1630.8 - Relationship or association with an individual with a disability.

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