Many New Jersey residents must pass a drug test as a condition of employment. In most industries, federal law does not pose any major restrictions on drug testing, and neither does the state of New Jersey. However, in some cases workplace drug testing may violate privacy or anti-discrimination laws.

For example, an employer that singles out an employee on the basis of race for drug testing could be sued for discrimination. An employer that fires a worker because a drug test detected legally prescribed drugs could also be in violation of the law.

In a recent case in another state, a man has sued his former employer after he was allegedly forced to take an observed urine test.

In some cases, the way that a urine test is conducted might be a violation of an employee’s privacy, but that is not what the man is claiming in this case.

The man claims that he has shy bladder syndrome, a disability that makes him unable to urinate in front of someone else. Because of this disability, he claims, he cannot possibly undergo an observed urine test.

The man says that he asked his employer to accommodate him by allowing him to provide a hair or blood sample instead of submitting to the observed urine test. The employer reportedly did not allow this, and the man says he was ultimately fired for failing to take the test.

The man is now suing his employer for disability discrimination and retaliation, arguing that it was a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act to fire him for failing to take the test as a result of his disability.

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, employers are required to make reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities. The future of this particular case, however, remains to be seen.

Source: The Southest Texas Record, “Technician files discrimination lawsuit over observed urine tests,” Michelle Keahey, Oct. 30, 2013