If you are disabled, it’s likely that you have heard of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This law makes it mandatory for employers to provide accommodations to their disabled workers. But how do you apply for accommodations?
Requesting the implementation of reasonable accommodations in the workplace starts with the disclosure of a disability. Next, your employer will share an overview of the subsequent steps. It is important to remember that the process of making reasonable accommodations is ongoing; both you and your employer will need to work together to ensure its success.
Read below for a more detailed run-down on how to apply for accommodations in the workplace.
Do You Have Legal Protection Under the Americans with Disabilities Act?
The Americans with Disabilities Act protects disabled individuals against discrimination in the workplace. According to the ADA, you are considered to have a disability if you suffer from a mental or physical impairment that prevents you from engaging in one or more of the most important aspects of daily life.
Even if you don’t actually have a disability, the Americans with Disabilities Act still protects you if you have a history of it or if an employer suspects you might have one.
To qualify for ADA protections, an individual must be diagnosed with, have a documented history of, or be perceived to have a severe disability.
A significant disability is one that considerably limits or restricts a key living activity like hearing, seeing, speaking, walking, breathing, doing physical chores, caring for oneself, studying, or working.
To be protected from discrimination in the workplace under the Americans with Disabilities Act, a person with a disability also needs to be qualified for the position, whether or not there is reasonable accommodation.
This implies two things. Employer-specific qualifications, like degrees, years of relevant work experience, talents, and certifications, are first on the list. Second, you need to be able to demonstrate that you can carry out all of the essential job functions with or without any reasonable accommodations.
Essential functions are the core responsibilities of your position, which you must be able to carry out independently or with reasonable accommodation. It is against the law for an employer to refuse to hire you just because you have a disability that prevents you from performing certain tasks, even if those tasks are non-essential.
Social Security Disability Insurance and ADA
In a case called Cleveland vs. Policy Management Systems Corp., the U.S. Supreme Court made an important decision. They said that if someone is getting Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits, it doesn’t automatically stop them from making a discrimination claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The court also said that getting these benefits doesn’t make it very unlikely for the person to succeed in their ADA claim. In other words, the court disagreed with lower courts that said if someone claimed they were completely unable to work to get SSDI benefits, they couldn’t later say they could do their job with or without some help under the ADA.
When Does the ADA Apply to an Employer?
Discriminating against disabled people at work is illegal if it happens by:
- private employers
- state and local governments
- employment agencies
- labor organizations
- labor-management committees
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is responsible for enforcing the section of the Americans with Disabilities Act that prohibits discrimination in workplaces with: (i) organizations with 25 or more employees as of July 26, 1992; and (ii) organizations with 15 or more employees as of July 26, 1994.
Procedure for Making Reasonable Adjustments
According to the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, every single application for reasonable accommodation needs to be evaluated on an individual basis in order to be considered. In this section, we will go over the many stages of the process of requesting reasonable accommodations.
Getting Started
Since employers are only obligated to make accommodations for disabilities of which they are aware, disclosing a condition is the first step in the reasonable accommodation procedure. Note that for a good solution to be settled upon, the process must be participatory, involving both the individual with a disability and the employer.
When an employee reveals that they have a disability to their manager or to human resources, it is essential for the business to immediately begin whatever process it has in place to provide reasonable accommodations for the employee.
Disclosure typically takes the form of stating something along the lines of “Due to my disability(ies), I am having trouble with XYZ job duty.” In most cases, only having an employee reveal that they have a disability without additionally stating that it has an effect on their ability to perform their job duties is not sufficient to initiate the process of providing accommodation.
Open an Employer-Employee Dialogue
Through dialogue, employers can learn more about the specific challenge the individual is facing and the factors contributing to those difficulties. Checking with the person to see if they have any thoughts about what would be helpful for them is another good idea.
At this stage, the employer is in a position to present an overview of the process to the employee who has sought accommodation. This will ensure that the employee is aware of what will take place in the subsequent steps as well as who will have access to the information that has been shared.
All parties involved must agree to keep discussions about reasonable accommodations private; such details will never be included in a worker’s personnel file and will not be discussed with other employees. If an employee needs a change in work-related tasks as a result of an accommodation, their coworkers may be informed of the change but not of the reason behind it.
Gather Preliminary Paperwork
If the employee’s need for reasonable accommodation is not apparent, the employer may ask them to obtain evidence of their condition from the relevant medical or rehabilitation professional.
Effective Accommodation
Finding a reasonable accommodation requires input from both the company and the employee. Because of their familiarity with the challenges a disability presents, employees are often in the best position to determine what reasonable accommodations can be made.
The company’s management team should take part because they have the best understanding of current procedures, rules, and customs. What kind of accommodation is implemented is ultimately up to the employer, but it must ultimately be successful in overcoming any functional limitations that the disability presents.
Implementing the Accommodation
Once the accommodation has been set, the employer must devise a strategy to implement it in the workplace and provide the employee with any necessary training. If an employer is going to turn down an employee’s request for reasonable accommodation, they should be ready to give an explanation.
Conclusion
If you’re a person with a disability, it’s important for you to be aware of the steps involved in requesting reasonable accommodation in your workplace. For more information on disability rights in the workplace, you may contact an attorney who specializes in disability.
