Our Athens Area SHRM Chapter will be meeting Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at the Georgia Center.  Networking will begin at 5:30pm followed by dinner and presentation.

F Kytle Frye III (Kytle Frye Bio.pdf) and Myra Creighton (Myra Creighton Bio.pdf) will be speaking to our chapter about the Americans with Disabilties Amendments Act.

Earlier this year, the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA) was signed into law, marking the first major overhaul of the Americans with Disabilities Act since its enactment 19 years ago.  The EEOC has since approved 93 pages of proposed regulations that will pave the way for a larger population of employees to establish that they are "disabled" under the law.  These regulations undo a series of recent Supreme Court decisions that had narrowed the definition of disability, in favor of provisions that construe this term in favor of broad coverage "to the maximum extent permitted" by law. 
 
The new regulations provide specific examples of impairments that consistently rise to the level of a disability, along with a non-exhaustive list of major life activities that form the basis for expanded coverage.  They also make clear that mitigating measures (such as medications or devices that eliminate impairment) are not to be considered in determining whether someone is disabled, and that episodic impairments such as epilepsy are disabilities so long as they substantially limit a major life activity when active.  
 
As a result, large elements of the workforce will be protected for the first time.  The EEOC is already advising employers to update existing policies and procedures to reflect these changes, and to "train personnel to ensure appropriate compliance with the revised regulation[s].”  Is your organization ready?  Hear from F&P experts who have been advising employers on these issues for decades, as they offer a practical roadmap for compliance with the changes brought about by these new regulations.  

Directions to the Georgia Center