So what happens when an injured employee returns to work and the employer can no longer accommodate his or her work restrictions?  Well, in some cases, the injured worker files a lawsuit for Americans with Disabilities Act violations.

The Union Tribune of San Diego reports that a jury awarded David Flores $520,000 of San Diego’s money after finding that the city had violated the Americans with Disabilities Act in firing the city employee.   Mr. Flores, while employed as a mechanical inspector, had sustained an industrial injury in 2006, but had returned to work for the city a few months later.  In 2009, his treating physician imposed a restriction against climbing ladders.

The city couldn’t accommodate the restriction, so Mr. Flores was let go.

But then Flores came back with an ADA lawsuit, claiming that San Diego should have still accommodated him despite a medically-imposed work restriction.

Now, bear in mind, your humble blogger is an even humbler Bay Area workers’ compensation defense attorney.  As such, he knows little to nothing of litigating ADA matters.  But what he is learning again and again is that employers just can’t win in California, and this story is no exception to the rule.