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How do companies provide for reasonable accommodation?

On Behalf of | Jul 21, 2017 | Disability Discrimination, Firm News |

Companies throughout California and across the country are legally required to provide employees with reasonable accommodation if they have a disability. Today, we will define reasonable accommodation and explain how companies provide for this requirement when they have employees with disabilities.

Reasonable accommodation is defined as the legal responsibility of a company to provide reasonable accommodations for to qualified applicants or current employees who have a disability so that they can begin or continue work with a company. The only time reasonable accommodation is not offered is when it would result in an undue hardship for the employee.

Companies can provide an employee or an applicant with a disability with any of the following accommodations:

  • Offering a different space to work
  • Offering leave or giving breaks
  • Changing work schedules
  • Changing workplace policies
  • Offering parking that is accessible to the building
  • Changing how the job can be performed
  • Allowing the employee to telecommute for the job
  • Providing the employee’s work materials in braille or larger print
  • Offering the employee reassignment to a different job within the company

All medical information that a company acquires from an employee who requests reasonable accommodation must be kept confidential. All of this information must legally be kept in a separate file from the employee’s personnel file. Almost all requests for reasonable accommodation must be met by an employer 30 days from the date of the request.

Working with a disability does not have to dictate how your career goes. An experienced employment law attorney in Sherman Oaks can explain reasonable accommodation and help you understand the law that protects your rights at the office.

Source: Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, “Procedures For Providing Reasonable Accommodation For Individuals With Disabilities,” accessed July 21, 2017