Fehrer Worker’s ‘Short Stature’ Not Disability Under Bias Law

A temporary worker removed from an assignment at a Fehrer Automotive NA LLC assembly plant because she is 4'6" and her limited reach left her unable to perform the work can’t sue for disability bias, the Northern District of Alabama ruled.

Height is a physical characteristic, not an impairment for purposes of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the court said Tuesday. It looked to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s definition of “physical or mental impairment,” a term used but not defined in the ADA, it said.

The ADA defines a “disability” as an impairment that substantially limits a worker’s performance ...