Attorney Steven Mitchell Sack, “The Employee’s Lawyer,” was recently interviewed by Newsday in which an operating engineer at a not-for-profit hospital asked if the employer was being intrusive about his ailments. Mr. Sack says the hospital has certain legal rights to be informed of a worker’s injury or illness, but must be careful not to use an employee’s health information when making human resources decisions.
The employee suffered a broken foot as the result of falling off a ladder. After missing six months of work, the employee returned with a doctor’s note that cleared the employee to return to work. However, the human resources specialist — who is also a physician’s assistant (PA) — wanted to see if the employee had regained enough strength in the foot that was broken by performing exercises by walking around the room.
