An employer may not make hiring, promotion, discipline, or job classification decisions based on genetic information unrelated to job ability, and may not require genetic tests or genetic information as a condition of employment or promotion.
(1) For purposes of this section: (a) Employee does not include an individual employed in the domestic service of any person; (b) Employer means a person who has one or more employees; (c) Genetic information means information about a gene, gene product, or inherited characteristic derived from a genetic test; and (d) Genetic test means the analysis of human DNA, RNA, and chromosomes and those proteins and metabolites used to detect heritable or somatic disease-related genotypes or karyotypes for clinical purposes. A genetic test must be generally accepted in the scientific and medical communities as being specifically determinative for the presence, absence, or mutation of a gene or chromosome in order to qualify under this definition. Genetic test does not include a routine physical examination or a routine analysis, including a chemical analysis, of body fluids unless conducted specifically to determine the presence, absence, or mutation of a gene or chromosome. (2) Except as otherwise required by federal law, an employer shall not: (a) Fail or refuse to hire, recruit, or promote an employee or applicant for employment because of genetic information that is unrelated to the ability to perform the duties of a particular job or position; (b) Discharge or otherwise discriminate against an employee or applicant with respect to compensation or the terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of genetic information that is unrelated to the ability to perform the duties of a particular job or position; (c) Limit, segregate, or classify an employee or applicant for employment in a way which deprives or tends to deprive an employee or applicant of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affects the status of an employee or applicant because of genetic information that is unrelated to the ability to perform the duties of a particular job or position; or (d) Require an employee or applicant for employment to submit to a genetic test or to provide genetic information as a condition of employment or promotion. (3) Subsection (2) of this section does not prohibit an employee from voluntarily providing to an employer genetic information that is related to the employee's health or safety in the workspace. Subsection (2) of this section does not prohibit an employer from using genetic information received from an employee under this subsection to protect the employee's health or safety. (4) This section shall not apply to the employment of an individual by his or her parent, spouse, or child. History: Laws 2001, LB 432, § 3.