wrongfulll term?

[dwekce]

I was terminated for drinking on the job. does the compney have to offer me rehab?

[mommyof4]

no it is not wrongful termination. Drinking on the job is a good way to get fired from ANY job. If you need rehab, why don't you seek help for yourself. It is not your employer's responsibility.

[cbg]

No, your employer has no obligation to offer you rehab, and drinking on the job will get you fired just about anywhere I've ever heard of. This is not even remotely close to a wrongful termination.

[dwekce]

Originally Posted by cbg

No, your employer has no obligation to offer you rehab, and drinking on the job will get you fired just about anywhere I've ever heard of. This is not even remotely close to a wrongful termination.

Employers are permitted to prohibit the use of alcohol on the job and require that employees not be under the influence of alcohol when they report to work. In addition, workers who behave or perform unsatisfactorily due to alcohol use may be fired or treated in the same way as other workers. This is because workers who drink on the job or alcoholics who are incapable of performing their jobs properly or who present a direct threat to property or the safety of others are not protected under the law.

However, all companies must be especially careful before making any adverse decision affecting an alcoholic worker and analyze each case on its particular facts.

Reasonable accommodation of an alcoholic often consists of offering the employee rehabilitative assistance and allowing him/her the opportunity to take sick leave for treatment before initiating disciplinary action. Even if the employee refuses treatment, documentation which clearly demonstrates repeated unsatisfactory performance must be in place before a termination decision is effectuated. In one recent case, for example, a company was found liable for not offering leave without pay for a second treatment in a rehabilitation program! The judge commented that one chance is not enough, since it is recognized that relapse is predictable in the treatment of alcoholics.

[cbg]

I am aware of the laws protecting employees who have successfully completed rehab. I am also aware that drinking on the job is not a protected activity. It might be different if he tested positive in a drug/alcohol test.

In this case, the poster has clearly violated company policy by drinking on the job and is trying desperately to find some kind of way to make it illegal for the employer to fire him.

[dwekce]

Drug and alcohol addiction are a illness and considered a disability and are protected by the ADA. You do not know the circumstances of the situation or the person in question.

[cbg]

So, why does your first post say that you were fired for drinking on the job, and your PM to me says you were not, that you failed a blood test?

I probably know what's covered under the ADA better that you do. Drinking on the job, which you said in your first post was what happened, is NOT protected under the ADA. You only changed your story when you thought it might get you the answer you want.

[ssn708]

True, if you were an alchoholic, and diagnosed as such, your employer may have a legal difficulty firing you just "For being an alchoholic". I think we could all agree, the disability in and of itself is protected. That is not why you were fired by my understanding. Unless I am mistaken, you were fired for your action (drunk on the job) not for your disability. I have Icthyosis. I can not be fired for having icthyoisis. I can, however, be fired for going up to the salad bar, and rubbing my skin off into the romaine. A cleptomaniac can not steal from the job, no matter how many psychiatrists say it is a mental affliction. Your boss was REQUIRED to fire you, as you are a threat to his other employees. He would be legally responsible, perhaps criminally liable, if you hurt someone.