Former TSA Officer’s Disability Bias Suit Revived on Appeal

The Transportation Security Administration can be held liable for a former employee’s disability discrimination claims under the Rehabilitation Act, a federal appeals court said Friday in a ruling that abrogates prior precedent that had exempted the agency from such claims.

The passage of the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act by Congress in 2012 explicitly subjects the TSA to claims under the Rehabilitation Act, the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit said in an opinion. While the Aviation and Transportation Security Act precluded disability discrimination claims against TSA, WPEA extended the protections of the Rehabilitation Act to TSA security ...