Two recent cases examining whether an employee is "disabled" and therefore, entitled to protection from discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA"), illustrate how courts are approaching health concerns gaining increasing societal attention: stress disorders and obesity.

The ADA prohibits employers with 15 or more employees from discriminating against qualified individuals with a disability in all aspects of the employment relationship and to make "reasonable accommodations" for all such qualified individuals unless doing so would cause "undue hardship" to the employer. A "disability" under the ADA is a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity such as hearing, walking, speaking, thinking, and performing manual tasks.

Source: Mondaq Labour & Employment