No Obligation to Engage in Interactive Process with Permanently Disabled Employee

Hires v. City of Atlantic City, 2010 WL 2195653 (App. Div., June 1, 2010) – A police officer assigned to the Atlantic County Major Crimes Unit brought a claim for disability discrimination under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination after the gruesome nature of his work led to severe psychological damages that left him totally and permanently disabled and unable to perform his job duties as a police officer. The Appellate Division rejected the employee’s claim that the employer failed to engage in an interactive process to identify a reasonable accommodation. The court held: “An employer is not obligated to engage in an interactive process and to accommodate a disabled employee where the employee’s disability reasonably precludes the performance of the particular employment. Where such permanent disability exists, the employer is not even required to offer a temporary accommodation such as light duty. An employer cannot be found liable for discrimination if the employee is permanently disabled and cannot perform the job.”