Employment Law Blog

Employers: ADA Protections Begin at Onboarding

It’s easy to think about the Americans with Disabilities Act and its amendments as compliance matters once an employee is fully in the door. An employee requests an accommodation to perform a job, the employer initiates the interactive process, etc. With a recent federal lawsuit in EEOC v. ALM Freight, LLC & LMDmax Corp., the EEOC is sending a very clear message about when ADA protections begin, and employers should pay close attention.

Offboarding before Onboarding

The employment at issue in ALM Freight began in the usual way – with an offer of employment and acceptance. LMDmax Corp. provides employment services for ALM Freight and reached out to the newly-hired employee for onboarding. The new hire is deaf, and so after completing her background check, she requested an American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter to assist her through the onboarding process for her first day at ALM. LMDmax texted her to let her know that they don’t supply ASL interpreters, then revoked her job offer. ALM Freight allegedly knew of the accommodation request and approved of the decision to rescind the job offer.

Accommodation is Key

According to the EEOC, the refusal by LMDmax to provide an interpreter was a clear failure to accommodate under the ADA. While there may have been other less-burdensome accommodations that could’ve been proposed, neither LMDmax or ALM Freight engaged in the interactive process to determine if any other accommodation could be provided.  The decision to rescind the job offer immediately after an accommodation request, without engaging in the interactive process, appeared to the EEOC to then be actual discrimination on the basis of disability.

ADA Attaches Instantly

This is a clear reminder that ADA accommodation requirements begin at the very start of the employer-employee relationship. Disability discrimination is clearly prohibited in the hiring process, but employers can overlook the fact that orientation and onboarding are part of employment and thus subject to rules requiring reasonable accommodation. Employers must make sure to consider all accommodation requests from the very start.

Liability Travels

Another key element for employers to remember is that a third party employment vendor can call down liability onto the employer, especially if the employer is aware of the vendor’s actions and/or ratifies them. Similar to negligent supervision, it’s important for employers to align policies with these third party vendors and have clear expectations with regard to how employment decisions will be made and by whom. 

A Costly Mistake

ALM Freight and LMDmax both settled with the EEOC in March 2026 for a combined $107,000, which is far more expensive than hiring an ASL interpreter for an orientation. The EEOC is sending an exceedingly clear signal that there’s no probationary period for reasonable accommodation.

Concerned about where your responsibilities as an employer begin? Contact an McBrayer employment attorney to learn more.

Cynthia L. Effinger, Member with McBrayer, is located in the firm’s Louisville office. Ms. Effinger’s practice is concentrated in the areas of employment law and commercial litigation. Her employment law practice focuses on drafting employment manuals and policies, as well as addressing social media, wage and hour, non-compete agreements, and workplace discrimination. Ms. Effinger can be reached at ceffinger@mcbrayerfirm.com or (502) 327-5400.

Services may be performed by others. This article does not constitute legal advice.