## Facts

- Andre Grenier worked as a shift electrician at a chemical plant from 1980 to 1989.
- In 1989, after an incident in which Grenier reacted emotionally and appeared unstable during a workplace investigation, he failed to report for his next shift and stated he was “losing it.”
- The employer placed Grenier on medical leave, conditioned on clearance by the employer’s medical department before returning, including permission for Grenier’s doctors to communicate with the company doctor.
- Under the employer’s disability policy, employment automatically terminated after two years on disability leave; Grenier’s employment ended by operation of that policy.
- In 1993, Grenier sought reemployment in the same electrician position and stated he had a disability and required reasonable accommodation.
- Before making any offer, the employer requested a physician’s certification that Grenier could return either (a) without restrictions or (b) with identified restrictions and reasonable accommodations.
- Grenier did not provide the requested certification and did not specify needed accommodations.
- The employer denied his reemployment request; Grenier sued under the ADA and parallel state law, challenging the pre-offer medical request and alleging discriminatory refusal to rehire.
- The district court granted summary judgment for the employer.

## Issues

1. Whether a pre-offer request that an applicant provide a physician’s certification of fitness to perform the job, with or without accommodation, violates ADA restrictions on preemployment medical examinations and disability-related inquiries under 42 U.S.C. § 12112(d)(2).
2. Whether the employer’s request was impermissibly broad, as opposed to a limited inquiry tied to the applicant’s ability to perform essential job functions.
3. Whether the applicant produced sufficient evidence that the refusal to rehire was intentional disability discrimination rather than a legitimate, non-discriminatory decision.

## Decision

- The First Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the employer.
- The court held the employer did not violate ADA § 12112(d) by requesting a limited physician’s certification in these circumstances.
- The court held Grenier failed to raise a genuine dispute of material fact that the employer intentionally discriminated based on disability in declining to rehire him.

## Legal Principles

- ADA § 12112(d)(2) generally bars pre-offer medical examinations and inquiries into the existence, nature, or severity of a disability, but it permits questions about an applicant’s ability to perform job-related functions, with or without reasonable accommodation.
- A narrowly drawn request for minimal, job-related medical assurance may be permissible when tied to legitimate concerns about current ability to perform essential functions, including workplace safety concerns arising from known prior incapacity.
- A fitness certification request limited to whether the applicant can work without restrictions or with specified restrictions and accommodations may be treated as a functional, job-related inquiry rather than a prohibited disability-status inquiry.
- To survive summary judgment on a discriminatory refusal-to-hire claim, a plaintiff must produce evidence that the employer’s stated, legitimate reasons are a pretext for disability discrimination.

## Conclusion

The First Circuit held that a pre-offer request for a targeted physician’s fitness certification—prompted by the applicant’s prior removal from a safety-sensitive job for serious psychological instability—did not violate ADA limits on preemployment medical inquiries, and that the applicant’s failure to provide the requested information left no triable showing that the employer’s refusal to rehire was discriminatory.


Grenier v. Cyanamid Plastics, Inc., 70 F.3d 667 (1st Cir. 1995)