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Garcia v. Allen6/8/2000
nstall telephone jacks in buildings and things like that, could he perform tasks like that with his knee?
A. I would . . . and I have restricted him to the point that I do not want him climbing. I do not want him squatting and kneeling. He couldn't do that.
Q. Okay. Could he squat and kneel and put on kneepads or shin guards, rather, and squat down and get on his knee and play Little League baseball and be the catcher for his son's team? Things like that?
A. No, sir.
Q. Okay. . . . would you say that he has the ability to kneel down in church for . . . lengthy periods of time during worship?
A. I certainly . . . would not recommend that he kneel down, say for the extent of, say a rosary.
Q. Okay.
A. Something of that nature. I think that we should do everything we can to stay in communication with the Almighty, and I've certainly allowed people to kneel to pray for a short period of time on padded areas. But, you know, he certainly can't for a prolonged length of time, And I would actually discourage him, unless it's just all necessary that he kneel to pray, period.
Garcia's position is that the life activities he is substantially limited from performing are climbing, squatting, kneeling and crawling. Whether an activity qualifies as a major life activity is determined on more or less a case-by-case basis. Recently, the federal district court for the Southern District of New York held that climbing stairs qualifies as a "major life activity." See Nodelmanv. Gruner & Jahr Usa Publishing, No. 98 Civ. 1231 (LMM), 2000 WL 502858 (S.D.N.Y. April 26, 2000) at *7. However, Garcia's doctor testified that he could climb stairs; his restriction is from climbing ladders.
The Supreme Court has offered some guidance in interpreting this provision. It stated that:
"Major life activities" includes functions such as caring for one's self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working. 1 CFR § 457.103 When referring to the major life activity of working, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) defines "substantially limits" as: "significantly restricted in the ability to perform either a class of jobs or a broad range of jobs in various classes as compared to the average person having comparable training, skills and abilities." §29 CFR 1630.2(j)(3)(i) (1998). The EEOC further identifies several factors that courts should consider when determining whether an individual is substantially limited in the major life activity of working, including "the number and types of jobs utilizing similar training, knowledge, skills or abilities, within geographical area [reasonably accessible to the individual], from which the individual is also disqualified." § 1630.2(j)(3)(ii)(B). Thus, to be regarded as substantially limited in the major life activity of working, one must be regarded as precluded from more than a particular job . See § 1630.2(j)(3)(i) ("The inability to perform a single, particular job does not constitute a substantial limitation in the major life activity of working").
Sutton v. United Air Lines, Inc., 527 U.S. 471, 119 S.Ct. 2139, 2142, 144 L.Ed.2d 450 (1999).
The southern district of New York found that an obese plaintiff was not substantially limited in a major life activity even though she could not kneel or bend because of her weight. Hazeldine v. Beverage Media, Ltd., 954 F. Supp. 697, 704 (S.D.N.Y. 1997); The Fourth Circuit found that, as a matter of law, a twenty-five pound lifting limitation does not constitute a significant restriction on one's ability to lift, work, or perform any other major
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