An employee of a company in Illinois has been taking time off of work for back pain, and recently disclosed to his employer that he has a back injury dating back to high school that periodically flares up. He recently had an accident in a company truck and took two days off of work for what he said was aggravation of his back condition. He was able to return to work after that time off without restriction. More recently he has missed additional days for back pain, reporting which each call-in that he hurt his back moving furniture at home, standing up in the wrong way, falling on the stairs, and the like.
The employer wants to fire him for his absenteeism, but is concerned that there may be issues with his past workers comp claim or other issues that could arise due to this being a claimed medical condition. What can they do?

