4.6 Virginia Disability Discrimination Laws

• Library: The Virginia Lawyer: A Deskbook for Practitioners (Virginia CLE) (2022 Ed.)

4.6 VIRGINIA DISABILITY DISCRIMINATION LAWS

The Virginians with Disabilities Act (VDA) ²⁰⁷⁶ prohibits job discrimination in employment and promotion practices against any otherwise qualified applicant or employee because of a disability. ²⁰⁷⁷ The VDA applies to all employers except those that are covered under the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973. ²⁰⁷⁸

Effective July 1, 2021, disability discrimination is included as a protected characteristic in the Virginia Human Rights Act. ²⁰⁷⁹ Under the VHRA, it is an unlawful discriminatory practice to fail or refuse to hire, discharge, or otherwise discriminate against any individual because of that individual's disability. ²⁰⁸⁰ A new Virginia statute, section 2.2-3905.1, requires employers with more than five employees to make reasonable accommodations for known physical and mental impairments of otherwise qualified persons. ²⁰⁸¹ An employer can deny a request for an accommodation if it would create an undue hardship. The statute lists the following factors to...