Yes. In this instance, the owner’s requirement for a high school education or a G.E.D. is not job-related and consistent with business necessity, as shown by the fact that Patty has successfully done the job for five years without meeting the newly imposed requirement. Patty’s success shows that the requirement does not accurately predict her ability to perform the job’s essential functions.

To be qualified to perform a job under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), an individual must satisfy the requisite skill, experience, education and other job-related requirements of the position, and must be able to perform the job’s essential functions with or without a reasonable accommodation. Essential functions are the basic job duties that an employee must be able to perform, based on factors such as the reason the position exists, the number of other employees available to perform the function, and the degree of expertise or skill required to perform the function.

If a job requirement excludes a worker from a position due to a disability, the requirement must be job-related and consistent with business necessity. Some requirements will obviously meet this standard, while others may require an employer to consider whether the standard accurately predicts the individual’s ability to perform the job’s essential functions.

An employer’s judgment and a written job description are considered evidence of essential functions, though they are not dispositive. Other evidence includes the actual work experience of present or past employees in the job, the time spent performing a function, and the terms of a collective bargaining agreement. Determining whether a job duty is an essential function is a fact-specific inquiry.

Source: EEOC Fact Sheet: Questions & Answers on Applying ADA Employment Rules in Health Care Jobs, reported in the CCH Accommodating Disabilities Business Management Guide at ¶90,071.