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ADA and hearing loss

 The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued a new question-and-answer fact sheet on how the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to job applicants and employees who are deaf or who have hearing impairments.

      The publication includes real-life examples that illustrate the kinds of jobs that people with hearing loss can successfully perform and the wide range of accommodations available. Topics addressed include:

  • when a hearing loss is considered a disability under the ADA
  • when an employer may ask an applicant or employee about a hearing impairment and what the employer should do if an applicant voluntarily discloses an impairment
  • what type of reasonable accommodation an applicant or employee with a hearing disability may need
  • what an employer should do if there are safety concerns about an applicant or employee with a hearing impairment

     Estimates of the number of people in the United States with a self-described “hearing difficulty” range from 28 to 32 million, says the EEOC, with that number expected to rise rapidly by the year 2010 when the baby boomer generation reaches 65.