From 2006 to 2016, EEOC charges against employers for ADA violations increased nearly 75%. With figures like that, some HR pros feel it makes sense to grant each and every accommodation request that employees make. But that’s not the case.

At the 2017 SHRM Conference & Exposition, Pavneet Singh Uppal and Shayna Helene Balch, partners with the Fisher & Phillips LLP law firm, highlighted some of the accommodation requests employers don’t have to make, as well as a simple strategy to determine if a request is unreasonable and able to be denied without fear of losing an EEOC lawsuit.

ADA Decision Tree

One of the most basic — but highly effective — strategies the presenters introduced was an ADA reasonable accommodation decision tree. Employing this strategy from the get-go, can save employers a lot of time and headaches and come to an accommodation decision by just answering a few questions.

First, ask: Does the employee suffer from an actual disability? If the answer is “no,” the staffer isn’t entitled a reasonable accommodation and you can move on.

If, however, the answer is “yes,” the next question should be: Is the employee able to perform the essential functions of the job without a reasonable accommodation?

Here, if the answer is “yes,” no reasonable accommodation is necessary and the employer can move on from the situation.

When the answer is “no,” the employer must reasonably accommodate the know physical or mental limitations unless the accommodation presents an undue hardship or direct threat to the employer.

Whenever the ADA — and potential accommodations — are in play, employers must engage in the interactive process. To that end, the presentation highlighted the five essential steps of the interactive process, which include:

  1. Discuss the problem with the employee and, if necessary, obtain documentation
  2. Brainstorm about solutions
  3. Decide on an accommodation
  4. Implement and follow up (adjust as necessary with situation), and
  5. Document every step along the way.

What isn’t required

Uppal and Balch’s presentation also included a useful list of accommodation requests employers aren’t required to accept. If any of these come across your desk, you can feel confident denying the quest — as long as you have proper documentation of your reasoning:

  • changing a job’s essential functions
  • lowering qualitative or quantitative production standards
  • allowing use of illegal drugs
  • providing treatment or monitoring of employee’s condition
  • allowing a disabled employee to violate work rules applicable to other employees
  • accepting violent conduct
  • eliminating stress from the work environment (although, you may have to reduce stress )
  • creating a new position
  • transferring an employee because of a personality conflict with a supervisor
  • granting an accommodation that imposes an undue hardship, and
  • tolerating erratic attendance or “work-when-you-feel-like-it” leave.

Based on “The Employee Accommodation Conundrum Part 2: How to Handle Complex Accommodation Requests,” by Shayna Helene Balch and Pavneet Singh Uppal, as presented at the 2017 SHRM Conference & Exposition in New Orleans.

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