Perfume/Scents

[Zanzeeb]

What is the name of your state? Montana

First, I am unsure where to post this question, so if it's in the wrong forum, I apologize.

My family and several other people are plagued with perfume/scent allergies. My fiance is deathly allergic to perfume/scents. His employer has been notified, but hasn't done much. In fact, a few months ago they moved him from a shared office space where the door could be shut and a warning was posted "not to enter if wearing perfume" to an open area where everyone passes by his desk. He has several allergy "attacks" at work each week. His allergy is severe enough that his doctor has told him that he will die from it. He used to have asthma attacks, but it has escalated to the point where he quits breathing completely and has migraine headaches (that last hours to days), dizziness and blackouts. If he has more than one attack within several hours, each subsequent attack gets worse. He has had up to 3 attacks in one day at his office. Wednesday was the first time where he actually passed out from the perfume another employee was wearing and he hit his head on a desk. He carries an epi-pen (sp?) shot, but if the people around him don't know how to use it he has a problem. He has shown the people that share his space what to do and where to find the epi-pen, but Wednesday he had been dispatched to another part of the building where the people did not know how to use it.

I have done some research on ADA and I know that there is specific language in it regarding the fact that breathing is essential to life and anything that interferes with that needs to have a reasonable accommodation by an employer. What are his options at this point?

[cbg]

He needs to talk to the HR department of his employer and make it clear that he is asking for an accomodation under the ADA. Telling them about his allergies is not enough; they can't assume he wants an accomodation without his saying so.

It's possible that his employer may declare his area a perfume-free zone, or they may go a different direction (fans, filter masks, etc.). Your fiance does not have the right to decide what accomodation he wants, but the employer does have to provide a REASONABLE accomodation (what is reasonable is widely variable with the job and the company).

BTW, you would have gotten an answer a lot faster if you'd posted on the employment law boards. This is not really a dangerous or defective product issue; there's nothing wrong with the product itself.