The 1990 Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) failed to define what a "disability" is, leaving interpretation to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, other regulatory agencies and the courts. As a result, businesses are confused -- unsure when they are, or are not, complying with the law. (The ADA does list a few conditions that don't count -- transvestitism, kleptomania and pyromania, for example.)

Does an employer who dismisses an employee for missing too much time from work because of a chronic illness violate the law?

• More than half of the 58,735 charges filed between July 1992 and December 1995 were for discharges or layoffs.

• Only 10 percent claimed discrimination in hiring, and just over one-fourth were complaints about lack of accommodation.

• Harassing the disabled was cited in 11 percent of the filings, even though it is not covered by the law.

Disabilities which can be hidden from employers -- such as back pain -- account for almost half of ADA complaints. On the other hand, hearing, vision and mobility problems have been cited only 14 percent of the time.

In some cases, ADA requirements conflict with other workplace laws, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act and parts of the National Labor Relations Act. Following one law could land an employer into trouble with the other. Another problem: the EEOC tends to view complaints on a case-by-case basis, making it difficult for companies to know how the agency will judge their actions.

Source: John Merline, "Firms Still Facing Gray Areas in Disabilities Act Rules," Investor's Business Daily, March 5, 1996.

Like many another well-meaning but poorly-thought-out legislative initiatives, the Americans with Disabilities Act is generating some strange administrative problems.

• The YMCA is being sued for $20 million by a "profoundly" deaf lifeguard after the organization decreed that lifeguards must be able to hear noises and distress signals, then dismissed him.

• To comply with the act, many states and localities have had to change their hiring requirements for police officers, establishing "sliding scale" physical fitness tests to accommodate older and female applicants.

• After the National Collegiate Athletic Association revised its regulations to cease recruiting high school athletes unprepared for college work, the Justice Department threatened suit -- alleging discrimination against students with learning disabilities who haven't taken college preparatory courses.

• A group of deaf people in Cleveland unsuccessfully sued the National Football League, claiming that the "blackout rule" -- which prohibits television broadcasts of home football games that are not sold-out at least 72 hours in advance -- violated the rights of the hearing impaired.

Critics of the ADA say they are concerned that it turns disabilities into prized legal assets and creates a powerful incentive to maximize the number of Americans who claim to be disabled.

Source: James Bovard (Future of Freedom Foundation), "Disability Intentions Astray," Washington Times, May 20, 1996.

The ADA defines a disability vaguely as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of a person. While well intentioned, ADA has led to absurd claims for special accommodation of behaviors or personal characteristics. Some examples:

• A clerk-typist fired from her county job after repeated rude outbursts and loud denunciations of her supervisors sued, claiming that she was a manic-depressive and her employer was obliged to alleviate job stress.

• A 360-pound Tennessee woman sued a movie theater chain for $1.5 million for emotional distress when none of the theater seats was large enough to accommodate her and they wouldn't let her use her own chair.

• A Tampa, Florida man fired after bringing a loaded gun into the office sued because he claimed to have a chemical imbalance and didn't remember bringing the weapon to work.

• A motorist in Topeka, Kansas sued the city after receiving tickets for speeding and not wearing a seat belt, claiming he could not wear the belt because of claustrophobia.

• A Boston University professor who allegedly sexually assaulted another teacher and harassed three students blamed his antidepressant medication for loosening his inhibitions and is suing, claiming he was fired due to his mental handicap.

• A man awarded damages for permanent disability from the Santa Fe Railway is suing the railroad for refusing to rehire him when he sought to return to work eight days later.

Source: James Bovard, "A Law That Is Disabling Our Courts," Reader's Digest, October 1995.