Georgia’s Failure to Accommodate Its Disabled Citizens

Workplace discrimination against individuals with disabilities is, unfortunately, not unheard of in modern America. At the federal level, Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (the ADA) takes special aim at alleviating workplace disability discrimination. At the state level, most states have adopted statutory regimes heavily influenced by, if not identical to, Title I. Yet a small minority of states, including Georgia, have not. This Note examines the implications of this decision. First, this Note briefly describes the ADA’s substantive workplace disability discrimination provisions and illustrates how Georgia stands with the distinct minority of states in refusing to adopt these key components of the ADA. Next, this Note explains how a recent Eleventh Circuit decision has made it more difficult for Georgians to receive relief under the ADA, thus showing the need for a more robust state-level disability code. This Note further shows how the policy goals inherent in the text of the Georgia Assembly’s disability discrimination laws imply approval for a stronger code in alignment with the key ADA components not codified in Georgia. Finally, given Georgia’s pro-business image, this Note surveys the economic benefits a stronger disability code would generate as a material incentive to adopt a more modern disability code.