Audit, Time Sheets and Termination
Soon after granting the accommodation, the company audited Shears’ time records. The review found he had consistently overstated hours worked compared with data from his access badge, the judges said. Energy Harbor fired him in May 2019.
On appeal, Shears argued the company violated the law by waiting for medical documentation before acting and by failing to recognize that diabetes-related cognitive issues caused his timekeeping mistakes. He also claimed the termination itself amounted to a failure to accommodate.
The panel rejected both arguments. Judges said Shears undercut his own position by acknowledging during oral argument that employers may reasonably seek medical documentation before granting accommodations. They also said failure-to-accommodate claims require proof that a reasonable accommodation was denied — not that an employee was fired for conduct allegedly linked to a disability.
Discrimination and Retaliation Claims Fall Short
Shears also contended the company discriminated and retaliated against him by firing him shortly after granting the accommodation. The panel said those claims collapsed because he failed to show Energy Harbor’s concerns about time sheet discrepancies were false or a pretext for bias.
While Shears argued his diabetes explained the errors, the court said that explanation did not demonstrate the company’s rationale was baseless. A doctor’s letter stating his condition affected judgment arrived after his termination, offering no proof that the company doubted its findings at the time of the firing.
The judges also noted Shears failed to provide sufficient detail about allegedly comparable employees who received lighter discipline for time sheet falsification, including how many violations occurred or how those cases matched his own.
