WHEN IS GROUP MEETING CHATTER ILLEGAL?

Managers talk with employees all the time, individually, in regularly scheduled periodic meetings and even informally during breaks.  In my experience, it is not uncommon for an employee to ask a manager about a co-worker’s absence. It is also far too common for a manager to respond telling them that the co-worker is on sick leave due to some medical condition, e.g., pregnancy complications,hemorrhoids, colon problems, etc. While that kind of exchange happens often in federal and other workplaces, the manager violates the law when s/he discloses an absent employee’s medical condition. EEOC just reminded a National Park Service manager of that by finding he had violated the employee’s right to medical privacy by responding in detail to a question under the Rehabilitation Act and ordered the agency to give the employee over $12,000 to make up for that single, and often innocent, disclosure.  This is something unions should make their members very aware of, e.g., email them a copy of this post.   For more details, check out Sadie M., v. Douglas J. Burgum, Secretary, DoI (National Park Service), Agency. Appeal No. 2025002310 (2026).  You can also check out our index under the Medical Issues and Medical Privacy headings.