Overtime work is essential in many industries. As a result,
employers frequently structure job roles to require mandatory
overtime. Although mandatory overtime can present difficult
questions when an employee has a disability that disqualifies them
from working overtime, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, in
McNeil v. Union Pac. R.R., No. 18-2333, recently confirmed
that overtime work can be an essential function of
a job in appropriate circumstances.
In McNeil, the Eighth Circuit evaluated whether Union
Pacific could lawfully terminate a disabled emergency dispatcher
who could no longer perform the mandatory overtime required of all
Union Pacific emergency dispatchers. The plaintiff brought suit
against Union Pacific following her termination and alleged
disability discrimination under federal and state law. In the
district court, Union Pacific moved for summary judgment arguing
that the plaintiff was not a qualified individual with a disability
because she was
