You Cannot Do the Job Anymore — We Are Letting You Go
Understanding your right to reasonable accommodation before an employer can dismiss you for a disability
Premiumintermediate8 minutes
The Situation
What They Said
“You cannot do the job anymore — we are letting you go.”
An employee developed a chronic health condition — such as epilepsy, a back injury, or diabetes — that affects their ability to perform some aspects of their job. Without investigating reasonable accommodations, consulting the employee, or following an incapacity process, the employer issued a dismissal letter citing the employee's inability to perform their duties.
The Fallacy
Inability to Perform All Duties Justifies Immediate Dismissal
Employment law in many jurisdictions distinguishes between dismissal for poor performance and dismissal for incapacity due to ill health or disability. For incapacity, the employer must first investigate whether reasonable accommodation can make continued employment possible — this includes modified duties, adjusted hours, assistive equipment, or a different role. Skipping this inquiry and dismissing directly is procedurally and substantively unfair.
What the Law Says
Your Legal Foundation
Ley de Contrato de Trabajo 20.744
art. 212 de la Ley de Contrato de Trabajo — Unjustified dismissal due to disability
“If, as a result of an accident or illness, there is a permanent reduction in the worker's work capacity and the worker is not able to perform the tasks previously performed, the employer must assign other tasks that the worker can perform without a reduction in remuneration.”
The employer dismissed the employee without first exploring whether other tasks could be assigned, despite the employee's chronic condition causing a permanent reduction in capacity. This violates Article 212, which requires reassignment to suitable tasks without pay reduction, unless the employer can prove impossibility not attributable to it.
What Scripture Says
God's Word on This
Romans 15:1 (NET)
“But we who are strong ought to bear with the weaknesses of those who are not strong, and not please ourselves.”
The ethic of accommodation — adjusting to support those who face additional challenges — is not foreign to faith. Employers who refuse to make any adjustment for a disabled employee, when adjustment is possible and reasonable, abandon both the spirit of the law and this moral standard.
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You Know the Law — But Do You Know What to Say?
Reading your rights is one thing. Using them under pressure — calmly, correctly, in the right words — is what actually protects you. Members get the scripted rebuttal for this exact situation: what to say first, what to say if they push back, the tone to use, and the constitutional provision to cite. Practise out loud with audio until it's automatic.