Handicapped worker bill progresses; discount chains face higher renovation expenditures

Discount Store News, Oct 16, 1989 by Deane Evans

Handicapped Worker Bill Progresses

WASHINGTON - Anti-discrimination legislation designed to protect the 43 million disabled Americans is on a fast track on Capitol Hill. If it passes Congress as expected, discount chains will face costly, federally-mandated store renovations for handicapped employees and customers.

The bill would require employers to provide accommodations for handicapped workers (e.g., wheelchair ramps and special equipment). Moreover, the measure contains a separate "public accommodations" provision which would force retail stores and other businesses open to the public to make "reasonable" structural changes to provide access for disabled customers.

The legislation would apply to a variety of citizens from the blind to those with AIDS, however, it would not extend to those suffering from drug-induced conditions, compulsive gambling and kleptomania.

If the bill is enacted, retailers could face expenditures of $2,000 or $3,000 to modify restrooms alone, according to Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, sponsor of an unsuccessful amendment to offer tax credits to affected businesses. Hatch also warned that operators who fail to provide required modifications could be fined up to $50,000 for a first infraction and as much as $100,000 for subsequent violations.

If passed, the bill would have particular impact on discounters undertaking "major structural alterations" to existing stores or building new structures. Thirty months after enactment the legislation would require such facilities to ensure that "the path of travel" to restrooms, drinking fountains, telephones, etc., is "readily accessible and usable" by disabled individuals.

For example, new and renovated structures with more than two stories or more than 3,000 square feet per floor would require elevators if needed to provide access for the handicapped.

In addition to mandating physical access for the handicapped, the measure also calls for other employer action for disabled workers, including:

* Restructured job duties or responsibilities; * Part-time or modified work schedules; * Modifications of existing equipment or purchase of new equipment; * Changes in worker examinations, training materials and personnel policy; * Provision of "readers and interpreters," if necessary.

The bar on employment discrimination against handicapped workers would be phased in after a two-year delay. During the initial phase-in period, the law would apply to employers with 25 or more workers. The exemption would be reduced to 15 or more workers after the first two years of enforcement. "Public accommodation" provisions would go into effect 18 months after enactment.