Medical information and reasonable accommodation Minnesota law closely tracks the ADA on disability and accommodation:
• Employers with 15 or more employees must provide reasonable accommodation to the known disabilities of qualified applicants and employees unless doing so would impose an undue hardship. • Reasonable accommodation can include making facilities accessible, job restructuring, modified schedules, reassignment to a vacant position, acquisition or modification of equipment, or providing temporary or periodic aides. “Undue hardship” is evaluated based on factors such as business size and resources, the nature and cost of the accommodation, and good‑faith efforts to identify less burdensome alternatives. Minnesota law also requires that when health‑care records or medical information adversely influence a hiring, firing, or promotion decision, the employer must notify the affected individual within 10 days ; the employee does not have to request this notice. Medical information obtained for fitness‑for‑duty, accommodation, insurance, or statutory purposes generally must be kept confidential and in separate files, subject to limited exceptions (e.g., supervisors who need to know about restrictions, first aid and safety personnel). Pregnancy and pregnancy‑related conditions must be treated the same as other temporary conditions affecting ability to work, and the duty of reasonable accommodation extends to women disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions under both Minnesota law and federal law. Lawful consumable products and off‑duty conduct Minn. Stat. § 181.938 (the lawful consumable products statute) prohibits employers from refusing to hire, disciplining, or discharging an employee because they lawfully use certain products off‑duty and off‑premises , including: • ood and alcoholic or nonalcoholic beverages. • Tobacco. • Cannabis flower, cannabis products, lower‑potency hemp edibles, and hemp‑derived consumer products , now expressly defined as lawful consumable products under Minnesota law, even if federal law is different. Employers may impose limited restrictions when there is a bona fide occupational requirement reasonably related to job duties, or to avoid conflicts of interest and similar concerns, but cannot broadly penalize lawful off‑duty use in violation of the statute.
Advertising, applications, and public accommodations Under the MHRA:
• Job advertisements may not express preferences or limitations based on protected traits (e.g., “girl Friday,” “maintenance man,” “recent college graduate”), except where a lawful BFOQ exists.
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