An Inclusive Litany

2/5/95

An Alabama waitress who was fired for poor performance made a disability claim because she suffered from recurring panic attacks that caused a personal "meltdown" when the restaurant was crowded.

The Chicago office of the EEOC launched a full-scale investigation into the claim of a woman supposedly passed over for a promotion because she notified the company interviewer about her disability: a microchip embedded in her tooth that enabled her to communicate with other people far away.

A man who was fired when he brought a loaded gun to his job claimed that he was entitled to protection under the Americans with Disabilities Act because he was receiving psychiatric care.

An employee who tried to get back pay from his company after supposedly firing him for "whistle-blowing," had, as it turns out, taken it upon himself to spread poison ivy on a toilet seat used by his boss, resulting in an injury that required two months of treatment.