Chapter § 3-7 § 1630.7. Standards, Criteria, or Methods of Administration

• Jurisdiction: United States

3-7 § 1630.7. Standards, Criteria, or Methods of Administration

It is unlawful for a covered entity to use standards, criteria, or methods of administration, which are not job-related and consistent with business necessity, and:

(a) That have the effect of discriminating on the basis of disability; or

(b) That perpetuate the discrimination of others who are subject to common administrative control.

3-7:1 Commentary

Cases in this area generally fall into three areas:

(1) Standards required by governmental regulators or derived from them.

• Siederbaum v. City of New York, 309 F. Supp. 2d 618 (S.D.N.Y. 2004) (exclusion of bipolar persons from bus driving positions pursuant to New York traffic law).

(2) Exclusions based upon a factual record on the need for the exclusion.

• Leverett v. City of Indianapolis, 51 F. Supp. 2d 949 (S.D. Ind. 1999).

In these cases, the employer successfully fended off an attack because they offered evidence, not just a conclusion (we need the rule for safety). They won the lawsuit because they offered detailed evidence on how the rule came to be adopted, why particular standards were adopted, and how the standards are implemented.

(3) Rules without factual basis.

• EEOC v. Houston Area Sheet Metal Joint Apprenticeship Committee, No. CIV.A.H-00-3390, 2002 WL 1263893 (S.D. Tex. May 31, 2002) (qualification standard that safety required that employees be able to hear; summary

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