Keep employee's medical status confidential, even if it triggers complaints of favoritism.

The ADA requires that managers and employers keep an employee's medical condition and disability confidential.

That can put supervisors in a difficult position if, for example, other workers complain about a colleague who seemingly gets a pass on performing some tasks or is allowed to take extra leave.

If those exceptions are reasonable accommodations of the employee's disability, supervisors can't say anything about it. That's likely to spur resentment, so it's wise to coach your managers on how to respond--and teach employees generally about accommodations to expect in such situations.

Recent case: Employees at a federal agency filed a series of internal complaints about the erratic and allegedly harassing behavior by their supervisor, a high-ranking director.

Several workers claimed the supervisor slurred his speech and acted intoxicated. Others said he often forgot what was on meeting...