If you are an employee with one or more disabilities, you may be entitled to reasonable accommodations at your workplace by your employer to enable you to continue working and protect your health. Employers with more than 5 and 15 employees are required to provide accommodations to disabled employees under the FEHA and ADA, respectively.
If you think you are entitled to accommodation, but your employer is refusing to provide you with it, you can take legal action with the help of employment attorney essex county.
What is considered reasonable accommodation?
Reasonable accommodations refer to arrangements made to a job or workplace to help the employee keep their job and perform the basic duties and obtain the same employment benefits as others. The following changes may be considered as reasonable accommodations:
- Change in application or hiring process.
- Change in the job position
- Change in the way the job is done
- Change in the work environment
However, an employer has the right to refuse to give accommodation if it is too costly or disruptive for them.
What are “essential functions”?
For the employer to provide you with accommodation and to qualify for accommodations, you must perform the job’s essential functions. Essential functions are duties that are the job’s basic requirements and because of which the job position exists. Factors that determine essential functions include:
- Number of applicants or employees available for the position.
- Skills required to perform the job functions.
- If the position solely exists to perform these essential functions.
Examples of reasonable accommodations
- Job restructuring: The employer may alter the timing of the job or how the job is done to make it suitable for the disabled employee.
- Acquiring or modifying equipment: Sometimes, providing or modifying existing equipment or devices can help disabled employees perform their jobs. For example, adjusting the height of a work desk for an employee using wheelchairs.
- Reassigning to a vacant position: The employer may remove the employee from their old job position and offer them another suitable position for which they are qualified.
- Modifying work schedules: The employer may change the work schedule of a disabled employee to help them attend their treatment, such as medical and physical therapy appointments.
- Part-time work: If a disability prevents an employee from working more than a few hours, the employer may provide a part-time work schedule.
- Training: The employer can provide training to employees if their disability interferes with their concentration or learning.
Being disabled can pose various challenges in a person’s life and one of the hardest struggles in dealing with employment. If you qualify for accommodations, you must exercise your right. If your rights are violated, you must contact an attorney for help and seek justice.
