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Psychological test violated ADA

An employer’s use of a test that measures a job applicant’s personality traits, but that also could be used to diagnose certain psychiatric disabilities, violates the Americans with Disabilities Act, a federal appeals court rules.

     The case involved three employees who sued Rent-A-Center (RAC) when they applied for promotions to management positions and were rejected. As part of the promotional process, RAC required employees to take its APT Management Executive-Trainee Profile, which was a series of nine tests designed to measure math and language skills as well as interests and personality traits.

     One of the components of the APT was a version of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), a psychological test that RAC used to measure certain personality traits, such as whether someone works well in groups or is comfortable in a fast-paced environment. However, the MMPI also considers where an applicant falls on scales measuring traits such as depression, hysteria, and paranoia and can be used to diagnose certain psychiatric disorders.

     The employees’ lawsuit challenged the use of the MMPI, and although RAC said it had never used the test to disclose mental disabilities, the court found that the testing program violated the ADA. Regardless of whether RAC used the test to weed out applicants with certain disorders, said the court, its use of the MMPI likely had the effect of excluding employees with disorders from promotions.

     Click here to read the case.