The Americans With Disabilities Act
by
Andrew H. Kahn, Esquire

Even severely disabled firefighters may be able to save their jobs with the help of the ADA because fighting fires may not be an essential element of the job.

A decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has important implications for firefighters with disabilities. Stone v. City of Mount Vernon, 118 F.3d 92 (1997). Matthew Stone, a paraplegic firefighter, sued the City of Mount Vernon under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Stone alleged that the Department refusal to accommodate his disability by assigning him to a light-duty position violated his rights under the disability statutes. The City moved for summary judgment arguing that Stone was unable to perform the essential functions of the job of firefighter. The United States Court of Appeals reversed the lower court decision. The appellate Court found that a genuine issue of material fact existed as to whether fire suppression was an essential job function.

Stone was hired by the Department in 1990 and served as an active firefighter. His duties mainly involving extinguishing fires, entering burning buildings, and performing rescues. He performed those duties until December 1992 when he sustained injuries in a non-work related accident which induced paraplegia. After undergoing physical rehabilitation, Stone was able to walk for a few hours at a time with the assistance of leg braces, use a wheelchair, and drive a car which is outfitted with special hand controls that enable him to drive. He was able to get into and out of his wheelchair and car without assistance and to climb and descend stairs out of his wheelchair while pulling it along with him.

During his paid leave, made possible by contributions of accrued paid leave from fellow firefighters, Stone taught fire and rescue related courses to probationary firefighters. In 1994, after passing an examination qualifying him for promotion to lieutenant, Stone requested that he be returned to active duty and assigned to a position where his disability could be accommodated. In May of 1995, Stone was informed that he could not be accommodated and could not return to work. Stone then filed suit against the City. The City moved for summary judgement which the federal District Court awarded for the City before discovery was completed. The District Court concluded that no reasonable fact-finder could find that Stone was able to perform the essential functions of the firefighter job.

However, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated summary judgment and remanded the case back to the Circuit Court because there was still a question whether fire suppression was an essential function of the job in two bureaus of the Department, the Fire Alarm Bureau ("FAB") and the Fire Prevention Bureau ("FPB") and whether the Department could reasonably accommodate Stone by assigning him to a position within one of those specialized bureaus. The Court found that although Stone could not fight fires, there was no evidence that he could not perform other duties of the bureau positions. There was no evidence that assigning Stone to one of the bureaus would have been unreasonable given career placement of other injured firefighters to these positions. The Court found no evidence that the cost of accommodating Stone would exceed the benefits. Stone supervisor thought very highly of him and considered him to be an asset. The only "cost" shown by the City and the Commissioner was that Stone would not be able to perform fire suppression duties if called upon to do so. There was no evidence that there would be a need to hire an additional firefighter if Stone was assigned to a bureau position. Finally, the Court rejected the Commissioner stated concerns about future implications of accommodating others if Stone were accommodated. The Court noted that each case must be looked at individually.

Conclusion
Regardless of the duties described in an employee position specification, if jobs actually exist which do not require substantial physical activity, a disabled firefighter may have a good chance of retaining his or her job with the help of the Americans With Disabilities Act.