Bill Haig National Reasonable Accommodation

CoordinatorEnvironmental Protection Agency

History of Reasonable Accommodation Rehab Act of 1973ADA 1990Section 501 & Title I now have same

standards, definitions & requirements Executive Order 13164, July 2000ADA Amendments Act of 2008Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act

Reasonable Accommodation & Definitions

Reasonable Accommodation: modifications or adjustments to a job, employment practice, or work environment that makes it possible for an employee with a disability to perform essential job duties, enjoy equal benefits/privileges of employment and an applicant w/disability to have equal access to application process.

Disability (actual, history of, regarded as)

Major Life Activities

Substantially Limits – Nine rules of construction

Undue hardship: Action that requires significant difficulty – extensive, disruptive, fundamentally alters nature or operation of office/unit, etc.

When is process triggered? (Step 1)

Process must be initiated by the employee, in most cases

What to listen for from employee Applicant requestThird partyVerbal vs. writtenWho receives request

Is the requestor an “individual with a disability?” (Step 2)

ObviousHidden/non-Obvious Is medical documentation needed or not? Who determines “disability” Information conveyed to “decision maker”

What accommodations will be considered (Step 3)

Requires Decision-maker (DM) and employee (may include others)

Look at particular job and determine essential functions

Consult with employee Must know functional limitations of employee Select the accommodation that best addresses

needs of the employee and employer RA must provide opportunity for employee to

perform essential functions of current job and/or adhere to uniformly applied conduct rules

Offering Reasonable Accommodation (Step 4)

DM approves/denies RA requestMust employer offer what is requested?Need not be best accommodation, just

effectiveMust only remove employment-related

barriersOffering another “effective” RA Personal use items not requiredResources available to employer & employee

(CAP, JAN, RAC, DEPM)

Basis for “denial” of RA (Step 4 continued)• Creates “undue hardship” Action that requires

significant difficulty – extensive, disruptive, fundamentally alters nature or operation of office/unit, etc.

• Changes the job for which person is performing or desires

• Removes essential job functions• Other employees do more work• Lowers production standards• Not a “person with a disability” • Failure to cooperate • Not a “qualified person with a disability”

Reasonable…Job restructuring (reallocate, redistribute or

eliminate marginal duties) Flexible scheduling (start and end times) Acquiring new equipment or assistive

technologyProviding qualified interpreters TeleworkPhysical changes to work area

These “are not” defensible undue hardship claims

“If I do this for you, I will have to do it for everyone else”

“We just don’t do that here”“I treat all of my employees the same”“I don’t have any money in my budget” (feds)

Timeframes to process RA requests

• Included in your RA Procedures • Should be as short as possible• Management/DM should be informed of

timeframes every step of the way

How effectiveness is determined (Step 5)• Removes the barrier(s) allowing employee to

perform essential job functions of current job in satisfactory manner and/or allows employee to adhere to uniformly applied conduct rules

Does not create undue hardshipIf creates undue hardship, then need to come up

with a different RA Evaluation of performance and/or conductIf RA is deemed ineffective, how to determine if it

is the employee who “will not” do the job, or if it is the accommodation that is “ineffective”

Reassignment (Step 6)LAST RESORT Process of reassignment Vacant, qualified, how long to look, where to

lookNot a competitive processMust be able to perform essential functions

with/without RARelocation expenses

Privacy Act & Confidentiality Strict legal limitations on use of medical

informationAll medical information used for RA kept in

separate filesShare medical information only on “need to

know” basis & if authorized, in writing, from employee

Revealing that employee is disabled and/or receiving RA

Recordkeeping/Tracking• EEOC requirements resulting from Executive

Order 13164 Employer/Agency requirements are outlined

in RA Procedures

Performance & ConductHow it relates to RA process Can you discipline? RA provides opportunity to improve RA is doing things different for an

employee with a disability