Anger Management Training and Reasonable Accommodation

In Recovery Racing LLC v. Abate - 017764/2005 (Nassau Co. Supreme Court, 8/10/07), the Court held that under New York Executive Law §296, an employer was not required to engage in anger management counseling to accommodate an employee's disability because such a requirement went beyond "reasonable" accommodation in the workplace.

In Abate, the Defendant moved and was granted leave to reargue a prior order which dismissed his counterclaim against the Plaintiff for discrimination. The Defendant alleged that he suffered from Parkinson's disease, the effects of which were exacerbated by a superior’s volatile and irascible personality which included yelling, throwing things and slamming doors. The Defendant argued that his superior assured him that he would curb his angry behavior so as to avoid causing Defendant undue stress, but did not do so. Thus, the Defendant resigned from his $350,000 a year position with the Plaintiff. The Plaintiff thereafter commenced an action to recover monies advanced to the Defendant under an employment agreement, and the Defendant counterclaimed for discrimination.

The Defendant's counterclaim under New York’s Executive Law alleged that the employer failed to provide reasonable accommodation for his disability since Plaintiff’s superior (a third-party defendant in the case) was not required to attend anger management training as a condition of continuing employment. The Court noted that no authority had been presented or uncovered which mandated counseling for an employer in order to accommodate an employee's disability activated by stress. Accordingly, the court adhered to its prior determination and the counterclaim was dismissed.

I'm sort of on the fence with this one.