How to Handle an Employee's Request for an ADA Accommodation

Do you have an employee or potential employee who, because of a disability, requires a reasonable accommodation to do their job? If so, Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires the employer to provide the accommodation as long as it doesn’t pose a direct threat to workplace safety or create undue hardship for the employer. 

Depending on the requested accommodations, this process includes a review of the job requirements and/or working conditions. Reasonable accommodations can include changes to the work environment, working conditions, or the way a job is performed, such as allowing the employee to sit while performing the tasks that are normally done standing up.

HR must maintain confidentiality about employees’ disabilities. Personal health information is not to be shared with anyone else in the workplace, including an employee’s manager; the only information the employer should disclose is that the accommodation is approved. 

The following steps are those generally recommended under the “interactive process” requirements outlined in the ADA. SHRM provides a checklist for your convenience. 

Step 1: Determine Whether the Employer Is Covered by the ADA

The ADA covers all employers with 15 or more employees, including state and local government employers. Federal government employers are covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 instead of the ADA, although the protections are very similar. 

Step 2: Have a Policy and Procedure for Handling Accommodation Requests

Employers should review and formalize their policies and procedures for handling disability accommodation requests. (SHRM provides a sample policy here.) 

Review the related job description to confirm all aspects of the job, including essential functions, and physical requirements, such as lifting, standing or sitting for long periods of time. 

Step 3: Initiate the Interactive Process

An employee or applicant request for a reasonable accommodation need not be in writing, nor must words such as “ADA,” “disability,” or other specific language be used. Employers are expected to know when the law may apply and engage in the interactive process, which is a good faith effort by the employer and the employee to discuss the limitations or performance issues the disability may pose. However, it is good practice for employers to obtain accommodation requests in writing.  

When a disability is not obvious, employers may ask an individual about the nature of their disability and functional limitations as they relate to the job. Additionally, the law allows employers to request medical documentation to understand these needs as they relate to the job.

See the ADA accommodation medical documentation form from the Job Accommodation Network, and the ADA site for what the ADA considers a disability.  

Should an employer need to consult with an applicant or the employee’s health care provider directly, the employer will be required to obtain a written medical release or permission from the applicant or the employee in question. This is because medical providers are generally bound under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy rules, preventing them from otherwise sharing or discussing patient medical information with third parties. 

Employers should note that it is not a requirement for health care providers to cooperate with employer requests for ADA information, even if an applicant or employee has consented to this. If a health care provider refuses to complete requested documentation, an employer may instruct an applicant or employee to seek another provider who will do so. In most cases, however, employers are able to obtain the information they need once the job applicant or employee has communicated with their provider about passing the needed information on to the employer. 

Step 4: Assess Whether the Employee Has a Disability Under the ADA

There is no list of covered conditions under the ADA, but the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) provides some examples of conditions and circumstances that can rise to the level of a disability. Organizations should use the ADA’s definitions of a “disability” and a “qualified individual with a disability,” along with information from the employee's health care provider, to make this determination.

Further, one person’s condition may rise to the level of a disability, while another person may have the same condition without it being a disability. For example, one person’s depression may prevent them from arriving to work on time consistently, while another person’s depression may not. 

• According to the ADA, a person is considered to have a disability if they: 1) have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity; 2) have a record of a physical or mental impairment that substantially limited a major life activity; or 3) are regarded as having such an impairment. 
• Once an employer has determined that an applicant or employee has a disability, they should next consider whether that disability substantially limits the applicant’s or employee’s ability to work or meet certain job-related requirements even though the impairment may not impose substantial limitations outside the workplace. 

Employers should avoid trying to prove that an employee does not have a disability; they should instead focus on whether an employee’s request for accommodation under the ADA is reasonable. 

Step 5: Determine Accommodations

An accommodation can be a change or modification to the workplace that allows the employee with a disability to perform his or her essential job duties. Examples: acquiring or changing equipment or devices, adjusting training materials or using interpreters for people with hearing or visual impairments, restructuring the job in question, making existing facilities more readily accessible, modifying or using alternative work schedules, or reassigning or transferring the employee to a vacant position.  

Reasonable accommodations can vary in price and scope. Some are free or low-cost, such as changing the employee’s work schedule, granting extended unpaid leave, or offering telecommuting. Others may be costlier, such as installing an elevator or modifying restrooms.  

The completed medical documentation should provide the employer with recommendations for specific accommodations pertaining to the job. If not, make sure you ask the employee to be specific about what accommodations they need. If the employee doesn’t know or isn’t sure, an excellent resource for common disabilities and their related accommodations is the Job Accommodation Network.  

Step 6: Determine Whether the Accommodation Is “Reasonable” or Creates an “Undue Hardship”

Next, employers should review the accommodation request from the employee or health care provider to determine whether the requested accommodation would create an undue hardship for the employer. Employers can suggest alternatives if the initial request creates an undue burden, assuming there is another cost-effective way to provide the necessary accommodation, for example. 

• In determining whether the employee’s request creates an undue hardship, the EEOC looks not only at the cost of the particular accommodation but also at the company’s financial stability. 
  
  Example: While it may be an undue hardship for a nonprofit organization with limited funds to provide an employee with a special chair that costs $1,000, the same request by an employee working in a for-profit organization that experienced sizable profits may not be seen as an undue hardship. 
  
  
• Accommodations that could result in an undue hardship include modifications that are “unduly extensive or disruptive, or those that would fundamentally alter the nature or operation of the job or business,” according to the EEOC.
  
  Example: Small employers that require employees to be able to perform a number of different jobs and tasks may not find it feasible or cost-effective to provide job restructuring as a reasonable accommodation. At larger organizations, this may be a free or low-cost option. 

• The EEOC does not see impact on employee morale as a reasonable undue hardship defense. 

Organizations must continue the “interactive” process until they find the accommodation(s) that meets the employee’s needs and does not create an undue hardship for the employer. 

They must also obtain verification from the employee and his or her health care provider that the agreed-upon accommodation will not worsen the employee’s disability or cause other problems. 

After determining the type of accommodation, the employer should document the specific accommodations it will provide. 

Step 7: Notify the Employee

HR will then notify the employee, in writing, that the requested accommodation has been approved or denied. Details of the accommodation and the anticipated start date should be included. 

HR must maintain all copies of accommodation requests, as well as supporting medical information and documentation—including denials—in a file separate from the employee personnel file, consistent with the confidentiality requirements of the ADA. 

Step 8: Review and Modify

The accommodation process is not set in stone. It may need to be reviewed periodically, especially if an employee’s disability changes or the needs of the business change. 

Example 1

An employee with more than five years of data entry experience has worked at the company for six months. Her doctor recently diagnosed her with carpal tunnel syndrome due to the repetitive nature of the job. The doctor writes a note to the employer recommending that the employee work fewer hours to prevent her medical condition from worsening.  

What happens next:

• The employee approaches her supervisor and requests a reduced schedule.  
• Following company policy, the supervisor reviews the employee request (Step 4) and determines whether it’s “reasonable” (Steps 6 and 7). 
• The supervisor recommends approval because there is an available part-time position where the employee can be reassigned (Step 6), and forwards the request to HR.  
• HR reviews the employee request, the doctor’s note, and the ADA definitions along with the supervisory recommendation (Steps 2-7). 
• HR informs the employee that her request has been approved (Step 8) and provides a memo documenting the request and approved accommodation.  
• HR files this documentation in a separate ADA file kept apart from the employee’s personnel file. 

Example 2

An employee who is obese and has knee problems recently returned to work from Family and Medical Leave Act leave. Her doctor released her to work without restrictions. Her manager reports performance problems, which the employee attributes to medication she is taking to walk. In addition, she is taking muscle relaxants and has been unable to sleep more than two hours a night.

What happens next:

• The employer asks the employee to provide documentation from her doctor to support her statements that her disability and its related medications are affecting her at work and to indicate any potential reasonable accommodations.  
• The employee provides a doctor’s note recommending that she be permitted to work from home, which allows her to limit driving and walking. The doctor also asks that the employee’s hours be adjusted (Steps 4 and 6). 
• After reviewing the essential job duties, gap analysis, and the accommodation suggestions, the manager and HR agree to allow the employee to work from home and to adjust her work hours.  
  
• To be consistent with the company telecommuting policy, the employee’s performance will be reviewed within 30 days. If her performance does not improve, her telecommuting privileges may be revoked. 
• The employee is given a memo documenting the request and the approved accommodations. HR files this information and related documentation in the ADA file (Step 8). 
  
  Other SHRM Resources:
  Checklist: ADA Reasonable Accommodation
  ADA Reasonable Accommodation Request Form
  ADA Accommodation Medical Certification
  When Is Sitting on the Job A Required Accommodation?
  Quiz: How Well Do You Know ADA Compliance?
  Must employers allow service animals in the workplace?
  ADA Letter to an Employee in Response to a Request for Accommodation
  ADA Accommodation Approval Letter
  ADA Accommodation Denial Letter