Responding to pleas for help with substance abuse

Q         We have an employee who definitely showed signs of being on drugs or alcohol at work. We want to let him go per our handbook policies, but he has now stated he is getting help for his problem. Is he protected since he is going to seek help, or can we fire him because he broke company policy?

A   The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) permits employers to discipline an employee who violates a policy prohibiting the use of alcohol or illegal drugs at work. The Act provides employers the same protection even if the employee violating the policy has a substance abuse problem, such as alcoholism or drug addiction. Since he has notified you, however, that he is seeking help for his problem before the company disciplines him, you will need to proceed carefully.

If the violation was due to the current use of illegal drugs, and he says he is seeking help for this illegal drug use, you are under no obligation to provide a reasonable accommodation. Illegal drug use isn’t covered under the ADA. Under these conditions, you could move forward with the termination.

If he says he is seeking help for alcoholism, however, he may be protected, and you would need to ask if he believes an accommodation would prevent further violations of the policy. If so, you should begin an interactive process with him to determine if an accommodation is necessary to correct the problem. You will then need to discuss the connection between the alcoholism and the recent violation of the company policy.