Reasonable Accommodations Process Should Be Interactive & Confidential

Reasonable accommodations (RAs) in the workplace are modifications to a job or an office to help employees with disabilities perform their position’s essential functions, their most significant job responsibilities. Federal and other laws require that employers provide RAs unless doing so would create undue hardship to an office, and RAs also must not cause “a direct threat.” The federal Americans With Disabilities Act defines a disability as an actual physical or mental condition that affects at least one major life activity, a record of such a condition, and/or a perception of having such an impairment.

People experience their disability when they encounter barriers, according to the social model of disabilities, and RAs seek to remove those obstacles. The office, not the employee, changes. Most RAs are inexpensive. Many are free or have minimal one-time costs.

There are multiple types of RAs. Examples include restructuring a job, changing the job schedule, providing different formats when giving instructions (e.g., written instead of just oral), and reassigning someone to a more suitable open position. RAs can also include training the office on how to work with the employee who has a disability.

Offices should have a written RA process, ensuring that everyone has the same understanding. This document may normalize RAs and reduce the hesitation some employees with disabilities feel when requesting RAs. Employees might be wary of disclosing their disability and fear stereotypes or stigmas related to it.

Offices must follow a certain procedure regarding RAs:

• Usually, an employee requests one. The person does not have to mention a certain law or use the words “reasonable accommodations.” The employee may disclose the disability and provide proof. However, an employer does not have to discuss RAs if a worker does not reply to an office’s valid request for medical information.
• The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission states, “If more than one accommodation is effective, ‘the preference of the individual with a disability should be given primary consideration.’” Offices do not have to do what the employee would like, but they should explain a denied request.
• The employer chooses the RA but cannot force the worker to accept it.
• The employer and employee should continue talking about the RA once it begins to ensure that the solution is effective. If problems occur, the employer should make changes. An office should not blame the employee for using the RA incorrectly, especially if the employer refuses to have ongoing conversations about it.

Everyone involved with RAs must keep these discussions confidential. Only people who need to know about RAs should be aware of them. Employees who would be required to perform their work differently because of an RA must not be told the reasons for the change.

Unfortunately, too often, offices mishandle RAs. Employers sometimes ignore employee RA requests, do not conduct an interactive process, and/or unilaterally choose an RA. These mistakes must be avoided at all costs.

The RAs process should be interactive and confidential. Contrary to many people’s perceptions, RAs generally do not cost much (if any) money.

Miriam Edelman, MPA, MSSW, is a Washington, D.C.-based policy professional. Her experience includes policy work for Congress. Miriam’s undergraduate degree is from Barnard College, Columbia University, with majors in political science and urban studies. She has a master’s in public administration from Cornell University, where she was inducted into the national honorary society for public administration. She has a master’s of science in social work (focusing on policy) from Columbia University. She is a commissioner of the DC Commission on Persons with Disabilities. Miriam aims to continue her career in public service. She is especially interested in democracy, civic education, District of Columbia autonomy, diversity, health policy, women’s issues, and disabilities.

Image courtesy of Pixabay