This brochure is one of a series on human resources practices and workplace accommodations for persons with disabilities edited by Susanne M. Bruyère, Ph.D., CRC, Director, Employment and Disability Institute, Cornell University ILR School. The original version was written in 1993 by Marjorie E. Karowe, Attorney, Schenectady, N.Y., and updated in 2000 by Sheila D. Duston, an attorney/mediator practicing in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. It was further updated in 2011 by Beth Reiter, an independent legal consultant, Ithaca, N.Y., with assistance from Sara Furguson, a Cornell University Employment and Disability Institute student research assistant

Duston, Sheila

Karowe, Marjorie

Reiter, Elizabeth

English

This material was produced by the Employment and Disability Institute in the Cornell University ILR School. Development of the original brochure series was funded by a grant from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) (grant #H133D10155). Content updates were funded by NIDRR grant number H133 A110020. However, those contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.This brochure is one of a series on human resources practices and workplace accommodations for persons with disabilities edited by Susanne M. Bruyère, Ph.D., CRC, Director, Employment and Disability Institute, Cornell University ILR School. The original version was written in 1993 by Marjorie E. Karowe, Attorney, Schenectady, N.Y., and updated in 2000 by Sheila D. Duston, an attorney/mediator practicing in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. It was further updated in 2011 by Beth Reiter, an independent legal consultant, Ithaca, N.Y., with assistance from Sara Furguson, a Cornell University Employment and Disability Institute student research assistant.A97_PDF.pdf: 1360 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

eCommons@Cornell

Pre-Employment Screening Considerations and the ADA

DigitalCommons@ILR

	 W W W . H R T I P S . O R G 	 1A D V A N C I N G 	 T H E 	 W O R L D 	 O F 	 W O R K w w w . h r t i p s . o r g
How Does the ADA Impact the Way in Which I Recruit Employees? 
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal statute that requires em-
ployers to focus on the ABILITIES of applicants rather than on their DISABILI-
TIES.  Title I of the ADA protects individuals who have a disability, who have 
a record of disability or who are regarded as having a disability (whether they 
do or not) from discrimination in employment on the basis of disability.  This 
includes the requirement that employers provide reasonable accommodation to 
qualified employees or applicants for employment except when the accommoda-
tion would cause an undue hardship.  The ADA also prohibits discrimination 
against individuals who have a relationship or association with a person with a 
known disability.
Pre-Employment Screening 
Considerations and the 
ADA
2 	 Pre-employment	Screening	Considerations	and	the	ADA
The ADA applies to all aspects of the employ-
ment relationship, including the recruitment 
and selection process. You should be aware 
of the ADA’s impact on each of the following 
areas:
• Advertising
• Applications
• Job Descriptions
• Interviews
• Testing
• Medical Exams
How Can I Make Sure That Persons with 
Disabilities Know About the Job and 
Can Apply? 
The recruitment process begins with letting 
people know that a job is available.  There are 
a number of ways in which employers can 
ensure that the advertising and application 
processes are accessible to people with dis-
abilities.  
Job information should be posted or adver-
tised in locations that are accessible to persons 
with mobility disabilities.  Similarly, large 
print on job notices posted at work sites or in 
employment offices may help a person with a 
visual disability to become aware of the job.  A 
job advertisement should include a TTY (tele-
communications device for the deaf) phone 
number (whether or not an address is also 
given).  Although the ADA does not require 
an employer to initially provide all applicants 
with written information in a variety of acces-
sible formats, an employer should make such 
formats available upon request.
If the advertisement indicates that the ap-
plicant should apply in person, employers 
should make sure that there is access for those 
with mobility disabilities, such as accessible 
parking spaces and ramps, and elevators if the 
interviews are not held on the first floor.  In 
addition, any  table, desk, or computer provid-
ed to applicants for the purpose of completing 
an application should also be accessible.  
While the ADA does not require employers to 
affirmatively target individuals with disabili-
ties, many employers choose to inform state 
agencies or private organizations that work 
with persons with disabilities about available 
job openings because it helps their company 
find qualified new employees. 
How Do I Know If an Applicant Needs 
a Reasonable Accommodation for the 
Application and Hiring Process? 
An employer may include information in 
the advertisement or on the application form 
inviting applicants with disabilities to notify 
them of any reasonable accommodations that 
they need for the application process.  Indi-
viduals with certain disabilities may need 
assistance filling out a paper application or 
completing a computerized application that 
requires typing or information be read off the 
screen.  An employer also may tell applicants 
what the hiring process involves (for example, 
interview, timed written test, or job demon-
stration) and may ask applicants whether they 
will need a reasonable accommodation for this 
process.  If the disability is not obvious, the 
employer may require the applicant to provide 
reasonable documentation from an appropri-
ate professional showing that the individual 
has a covered disability and needs an accom-
modation.
What Questions Can I Ask on the Job 
Application? 
The purpose of a job application is to gather 
information on the skills, abilities, training, 
credentials, and references of the applicant 
and questions relating to any of these areas 
are permissible under the ADA.  An employer 
	 W W W . H R T I P S . O R G 	 3
may ask whether applicants can perform any 
or all job functions.  If a disability is obvious 
or if the applicant indicates that s/he may be 
unable to perform a specific job function, the 
employer may ask whether the applicants can 
perform the job functions “with or without 
reasonable accommodation.”  An employer 
also may ask applicants whether they can 
meet the attendance requirements.
A job application should not contain disabil-
ity–related questions that are likely to elicit 
information about a disability, including inqui-
ries about prior or current illnesses, medica-
tion, medical treatment, disabilities, injuries, 
or workers’ compensation claims.  An applica-
tion also should not ask whether an individual 
needs a reasonable accommodation to perform 
the functions of the job since the question by 
itself is likely to elicit information about dis-
ability.  
Will I Have to Change My Job 
Descriptions? 
Under the ADA, a person is considered a 
qualified individual with a disability if s/
he meets all the educational and experience 
requirements for the position and can perform 
the essential functions of the job with or with-
out reasonable accommodation.  Although the 
ADA does not require an employer to have job 
descriptions, they can be used as evidence of 
the essential functions of the job.  Be sure that 
your job descriptions are up-to-date and that 
they differentiate between the essential and 
the marginal job duties.  Marginal functions 
are those that are not absolutely necessary for 
the job, although they might be convenient for 
the employer.
How Should I Interview Job Applicants? 
The purpose of the interview is to meet the 
applicant and learn more about his/her educa-
tion, credentials, skills and work experience 
in order to determine whether s/he can do the 
job.  Questions about whether an applicant 
is an individual with a disability, or as to the 
nature or severity of such disability, are pro-
hibited.
A good approach is to describe the job in detail 
so that the applicant has a reasonable under-
standing of what is expected, and then ask 
the applicant whether s/he can perform the 
job with or without reasonable accommoda-
tion.  An employer can also ask applicants to 
describe or demonstrate how, with or without 
reasonable accommodation, they will be able 
to perform any or all job functions, as long as 
all applicants in the job category are asked to 
do the same.  
Any necessary reasonable accommodations 
requested by the individual for the interview 
(for example, an accessible location for a per-
son with a mobility disability or a sign lan-
guage interpreter for a deaf applicant) should 
be provided unless it would impose an undue 
hardship on the employer’s business.  
If an Applicant has an Obvious 
Disability, Can I Mention It? 
If an employer could reasonably believe that 
an applicant will not be able to perform an 
essential job function because of either an 
obvious disability or a hidden disability that 
the applicant has voluntarily disclosed, the 
employer may ask the applicant to describe 
or demonstrate how s/he would perform that 
function.  Similarly, if the employer reason-
ably believes that the applicant will need an 
accommodation, because of either an obvi-
ous disability or voluntary disclosures by the 
4 	 Pre-employment	Screening	Considerations	and	the	ADA
applicant, it may ask whether s/he needs an 
accommodation and, if so, ask about the type 
of accommodation required. 
Does the ADA Prohibit Job Testing?
No.  The ADA only prohibits employment 
tests that screen out individuals on the basis 
of disability, when it cannot be shown that the 
test is job-related for the position in question 
and consistent with business necessity.  The 
ADA’s goal is to make sure that individuals 
with disabilities are not excluded from jobs 
that they can do.  The ADA thus requires a 
close fit between selection criteria, including 
job tests, and the applicant’s (or employee’s) 
ability to do the job.
Tests that measure aptitude, skills, physical 
fitness, the ability to do actual or simulated job 
tasks, and any other non-medical factors can 
be given to applicants at any time during the 
pre-employment process since such tests are 
not considered to be “medical examinations” 
under the ADA.  Tests must be designed to 
evaluate performance of the job’s essential 
functions and be accurate predictors of suc-
cessful job performance.  In addition, a job test 
relating to an essential function cannot be used 
to exclude an individual with disability if s/he 
can pass the test with a reasonable accommo-
dation. 
How Does Reasonable Accommodation 
Apply to Job Testing?
The ADA protects people with disabilities 
from being excluded from jobs that they actu-
ally can do because a disability prevents them 
from taking a test or negatively influences the 
results.  As in other areas of the employment 
process, applicants with disabilities are en-
titled to reasonable accommodation in the test-
ing process.  The ADA also requires that tests 
be given to people who have impaired sen-
sory, speaking or manual skills (including the 
abilities to see, hear, and process information) 
in a manner that does not require the use of 
the impaired skill, unless the test is designed 
to measure that skill.
For example, a person with dyslexia should 
be given an opportunity to take a test orally 
unless reading is the skill being tested.  Pro-
viding extra time to complete a test may be a 
reasonable accommodation as long as speed is 
not the skill being tested.  If the applicant has 
a mobility impairment the employer should 
ensure that the testing site is accessible.  As 
always, the employer need not provide an 
accommodation that will impose an undue 
hardship. 
It is a good idea to inform applicants in ad-
vance about tests that will be administered so 
that they have an opportunity to request any 
needed accommodations ahead of time.  Oc-
casionally, an individual may not realize that 
s/he will need an accommodation until the test 
is given.  For example, a person with a visual 
impairment who can usually read printed 
material finds that she cannot read the test 
because of an unusually low color contrast 
between the ink and the paper.  In this situa-
tion, the employer could provide the test in a 
higher contrast format at that time, reschedule 
the test, or make any other effective accommo-
dation that would not impose an undue hard-
ship. 
Are There Special Rules for Medical 
Examinations?
Yes.  Medical examinations or disability-relat-
ed questions such as a medical questionnaire 
are prohibited until after you have made a 
conditional job offer to the applicant.  A medi-
cal exam is defined as a procedure or test that 
seeks information about an individual’s physi-
cal or mental impairments or health.  
	 W W W . H R T I P S . O R G 	 5
Employment can be conditioned on the results 
of post-offer medical exams or disability-relat-
ed questions.  If medical exams or disability-
related questions are required, they must be 
required of all entering employees in the same 
job category.  You cannot require exams or 
make inquiries of some applicants but not oth-
ers.  
Can I Disclose Information from a 
Medical Examination? 
All information obtained from post-offer 
medical examinations and inquiries must be 
collected and maintained on separate forms, in 
separate medical files and must be treated as 
a confidential medical record.  Medical infor-
mation must not be placed in an individual’s 
personnel file.  
The employer should take steps to guarantee 
the security of the employee’s medical infor-
mation, including:
• keeping the information in a medical file in 
a separate, locked cabinet, apart from the 
location of personnel files; and
• designating a specific person or persons to 
have access to the medical file.
Can I Share the Medical Information 
with Anyone?
An employer must keep medical information 
on applicants or employees confidential, with 
the following limited exceptions:
• supervisors and managers may be told 
about necessary job restrictions and ac-
commodations;
• first aid and safety personnel may be told 
if the disability might require emergency 
treatment;
• government officials investigating the 
ADA must be given relevant information 
on request;
• employers may give information to state 
workers’ compensation offices, state sec-
ond injury funds or workers’ compensa-
tion insurance carriers in accordance with 
state workers’ compensation laws; and
• employers may use the information for 
insurance purposes.
Medical information may be given to and used 
by decision-makers involved in the hiring 
process so that they can make employment 
decisions consistent with the ADA.  In addi-
tion, the employer can use the information to 
determine reasonable accommodations for the 
individual.
Is Drug Testing Prohibited?
The ADA neither requires nor prohibits drug 
testing.  A test for the illegal use of drugs is not 
considered to be a medical examination and 
can be given prior to a job offer or at any other 
time.  An individual currently engaging in the 
illegal use of drugs is not a protected indi-
vidual under the ADA.  The ADA considers a 
positive drug test to be indicative of current 
drug use. 
Drug testing does not have to be related either 
to job duties or business necessity.  If you are 
going to require drug tests of applicants, it 
is advisable to test all applicants, or all ap-
plicants for a certain job category.  Also be sure 
that the procedures you use conform to appli-
cable federal, state and local law.  
What About Safety Concerns?
The ADA does not compel an employer to 
hire a person who would be a direct threat 
to the health and safety of others at the work 
site.  Before you decide not to hire someone 
because you think s/he poses a direct threat, 
you must first determine that the individual 
poses a significant risk (i.e., a high probability) 
of substantial harm to the health and safety of 
others that cannot be reduced or eliminated by 
reasonable accommodation.  
6 	 Pre-employment	Screening	Considerations	and	the	ADA
This determination must be based on an in-
dividualized as-sessment of the individual’s 
present ability to safely perform the essential 
functions of the job.  The specific risk posed 
by the individual should be identified.  The 
determination of whether an individual poses 
a direct threat should be based on the follow-
ing factors:
1. the duration of the risk;
2. the nature and severity of the potential 
harm;
3. the likelihood that the potential harm will 
occur; and
4. the imminence of the potential harm.
Your assessment of a direct threat to health or 
safety must be based upon a reasonable judg-
ment that relies on the most current medical 
knowledge and/or on the best objective evi-
dence.
Resources
ADA Regional Disability and Business 
Technical Assistance Center Hotline
800.949.4232 (voice/TTY)
Job Accommodation Network
PO Box 6080
Morgantown, WV 26506-6080 
800.526.7234 (voice) or 877.781.9403 (TTY)
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 
131 M Street, NE
Washington, DC 20507 
800.669.4000 (voice), 800.669.6820 (TTY) 
for publications: 800.669.3362 (voice) or 
800.669.3302 (TTY)
	 W W W . H R T I P S . O R G 	 7
About this Brochure
This brochure is one of a series on human 
resources practices and workplace accommo-
dations for persons with disabilities edited by 
Susanne M. Bruyère, Ph.D., CRC,  Director, 
Employment and Disability Institute, Cornell 
University ILR School. 
The original version was written in 1993 by 
Marjorie E. Karowe, Attorney, Schenectady, 
N.Y., and updated in 2000 by Sheila D. Duston, 
an attorney/mediator practicing in the Wash-
ington, D.C. metropolitan area.  It was further 
updated in 2011 by Beth Reiter, an indepen-
dent legal consultant, Ithaca, N.Y.,  with as-
sistance from Sara Furguson, a Cornell Uni-
versity Employment and Disability Institute 
student research assistant.
These updates, and the development of new 
brochures, were funded by Cornell, the Na-
tional ADA Center Network, and other sup-
porters.
The full text of this brochure, and others in 
this series, can be found at www.hrtips.org. 
More information on accessibility and accom-
modation is available from the ADA National 
Network at 800.949.4232 (voice/ TTY), 
www.adata.org.
Disclaimer
This material was produced by the Employment 
and Disability Institute in the Cornell University ILR 
School.   Development of the original brochure series 
was funded by a grant from the National Institute on 
Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) (grant 
#H133D10155).   Content updates were funded by 
NIDRR grant number H133 A110020.  However, those 
contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the 
Department of Education, and you should not assume 
endorsement by the Federal Government.  
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 
has reviewed it for accuracy.  However, opinions about 
the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) expressed 
in this material are those of the author, and do not 
necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the Commission or 
the publisher.  EEOC interpretations of the ADA are 
reflected in its ADA regulations (29 CFR Part 1630), 
Technical Assistance Manual for Title I of the Act, and 
Enforcement Guidance.  
Cornell University is authorized by NIDRR to provide 
information, materials, and technical assistance to indi-
viduals and entities that are covered by the Americans 
with Disabilities Act (ADA).  You should be aware that 
NIDRR is not responsible for enforcement of the ADA.  
The information, materials, and/or technical assistance 
are intended solely as informal guidance, and are 
neither a determination of your legal rights or responsi-
bilities under the Act, nor binding on any agency with 
enforcement responsibility under the ADA.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has 
issued enforcement guidance which provides ad-
ditional clarification of various elements of the Title 
I provisions under the ADA.  Copies of the guidance 
documents are available for viewing and downloading 
from the EEOC web site at: 
http://www.eeoc.gov
	 Pre-employment	Screening	Considerations	and	the	ADA
Contact Information
Susanne M. Bruyère, Ph.D., CRC
Director, Employment and Disability Institute
Cornell University
ILR School
201 Dolgen Hall
Ithaca, New York 14853-3201
Voice: 607.255.7727
Fax: 607.255.2763
TTY: 607.255.2891
Email: smb23@cornell.edu
Web: www.edi.cornell.edu
To view all the brochures in this series, please visit:
www.hrtips.org


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