The ADA prohibits employers with 15 or more employees from terminating an employee based on a real or perceived disability, which it defines as a “physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.”
Employers can terminate employees with disabilities under certain conditions, the U.S. Department of Labor has noted — when the termination is unrelated to the disability; when the employee does not meet legitimate requirements for the job, such as performance or production standards, with or without a reasonable accommodation; or if the employee’s disability poses a direct threat to the health and safety of the workplace.
