"Addicted to Internet" Protected Disability? 03-07-2007
- By Rita Risser, attorney at law

According to news reports, a man is suing IBM for wrongful termination saying that his use of Internet chatrooms is a disability - not unlike drug and alcohol addiction - and that IBM's decision to fire him for visiting chatrooms while at work violates the Americans with Disability Act (ADA). Your first reaction might be the same as Jay Leno's, "Shut up!" But is it possible he could have a valid claim? Let's look at the ADA.

The ADA specifically excludes from protection many "addictions" including gambling, kleptomania, pyromania, voyeurism, exhibitionism, pedophilia, and sexual behavior disorders. Apparently the company contends he was visiting an "adult" chatroom, and therefore he is not protected by the ADA. However, the employee contends he was addicted to chatting, not sexual content.

The ADA protects only those drug addicts who are in the process of, or have successfully completed, a rehabilitation program. The law also protects current users of alcohol, but only if they do not otherwise violate any work rules. For example, an employer cannot discriminate against an employee who drinks every night and weekend, but could fire him if he came to work drunk or otherwise impaired. This man's "addiction" does not meet either of those standards - he is not in rehabilitation, and he is violating company work rules.

The ADA protects a person with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities, such as seeing, walking, or eating. At this point, there is no evidence that he was so impaired. Even if he was, he must then show he was a qualified individual, meaning he could do the job as required by IBM. One of the company's requirements is that employees follow company rules, so it would not seem he is a qualified individual.

Although the man has a lawyer, it should be noted that he is also a lawyer himself, so that may explain why such a weak case ever got filed in the first place.

What you should do: Apply work rules consistently to everyone, and no one can claim discrimination for any reason.

 

Information here is correct at the time it is posted. Case decisions cited here may be reversed. Please do not rely on this information without consulting an attorney first.