Preschool Aid With Sciatica Denied Access To Chair, Forced Out Of School

My Mother in Law has been working as a teacher’s aid at a public preschool in NJ for over 20 years. Her job description requires that she be able to lift objects up to 50 pounds, but reasonable accommodations can be made for people with disabilities/medical issues. It’s worth mentioning that she has never been asked to lift anything more than ~20 pounds in her career there.

Since it is a preschool, the majority of chairs in her classroom are preschooler sized. The teacher has an adult sized chair, but my MIL does not have one dedicated to her.

Recently, she developed some Sciatica-related back pain, and it was recommended by her doctor that she not lift objects heavier than 25 pounds while she recovers, and that she sits in a proper chair for a certain amount of time throughout the day to rest. Her doctor provided a note to that effect.

When she presented the note to her principal, the request was denied immediately on the grounds that a chair would take up too much space in the classroom and (paraphrasing) “if she can’t do her job correctly then maybe that’s a different discussion” and “she shouldn’t be sitting on the job anyway, she should be working”.

Since she was not provided a proper chair, she asked the janitor to give her a folding chair to sit on as needed, and to store when not in use. When the principal discovered the folding chair in the preschool classroom, it was removed and my MIL was reprimanded.

At this point, my MIL filed with the school district’s 504 accommodations committee to be provided a chair. After some behind the scenes conversations between the principal and the accommodations committee, it was decided that my MIL should be moved to a different school to avoid causing further problems. She does not want to move schools, as she’s nearing retirement and has worked at this school for over 20 years.

It is worth mentioning that the principal is relatively new to the school, and has been extremely rude to my MIL in the past. My MIL is the sweetest woman you will ever meet, and all she wants is a chair to sit on when tired, and to continue doing the job she loves so much at her school. She has no interest in stirring up drama, just in managing her pain while continuing to serve the children.

As a layperson, this feels like an ADA violation, and an unnecessarily cruel treatment of my MIL (who, whether relevant or not I don’t know, is an immigrant). I am looking for advice about whether or not she has any recourse in this situation, and if we should consider legal action against the school district.

My Wife’s family and I are fuming. All we want is for my MIL to be allowed to continue doing her job, and to be accommodated for her back pain, as prescribed by her doctor.

I would appreciate any advice you can provide. Thank you in advance for your help.