In EEOC v. Orion Energy Systems, Inc., the Eastern District of Wisconsin rejected the EEOC’s claims that Orion Energy’s wellness program violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). Although the court upheld the employer’s past practice, the court signaled that the EEOC’s recent regulations on wellness plans (discussed here and here), which limit the incentive that an employer can provide to encourage participation in a wellness program, will be enforceable going forward. Although it has limited precedential value, the Orion decision suggests that employers should continue to take the new regulations into account for 2017 and beyond.
biometric screening
Big Employer Win in Wellness Program Case EEOC v. Flambeau
By Paul M. Hamburger & Tzvia Feiertag on
For the past couple of years, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has been challenging employer wellness programs for their alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The most recent EEOC challenge was in EEOC v. Flambeau, Inc., (No. 14-cv-638-bbc (December 31, 2015)). In this case, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin handed the EEOC another loss in a wellness case (and handed employers a big win) by holding that the ADA “safe harbor” provision for bona fide benefit plans allowed the Wisconsin plastics manufacturer to condition participation in its self-funded group health plan on a requirement that employees complete a health risk assessment (HRA) and undergo “biometric screening.”