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Reasonable Accommodation
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, protects qualified employees and applicants with disabilities in the Executive Branch of the Federal government from employment discrimination based on disability. In 1992, the substantive employment standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. Section 12111, et seq., were made applicable to the Federal Government through the Rehabilitation Act. The amended law requires Federal employers to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities so that employees with disabilities can enjoy the benefits and privileges of employment equal to those enjoyed by similarly situated employees without disabilities. It requires Federal agencies to provide reasonable accommodation for known physical or mental limitations of qualified employees and applicants, unless to do so would cause undue hardship. The law also ensures equal access to Federal programs, activities, and facilities to people with disabilities.
In addition, Executive Order 13164, issued on July 26, 2000, requires Federal agencies to develop written procedures for providing reasonable accommodation. Contact the agency personnel office, reasonable accommodation coordinator, civil rights office, or EEO office to request a copy of a particular agency’s written procedures.
This section addresses reasonable accommodation and provides links to guidance,
resources, and best practices.
Who is an individual with a disability?
An individual with a disability:
- has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more
of the person's major life activities;
- has a record of such an impairment; or
- is regarded as having such impairment.
What is a major life activity?
A major life activity is a function that the average person in the general
population can perform with little or no difficulty. Major life activities include
activities such as caring for oneself, seeing, hearing, walking, breathing,
speaking, learning, sitting, standing, lifting, reaching, and working.
Who is a qualified individual with a disability?
A qualified individual with a disability has the skills, experience, education,
and other requirements of the job the individual holds or desires, and can perform
the essential functions of the position with or without reasonable accommodation.
What happens if the disability is not obvious?
When the disability and/or the need for accommodation is not obvious, the employer
may ask the individual for reasonable documentation about his/her disability
and functional limitations. An employer should respond expeditiously to a request
for reasonable accommodation.
What is an undue hardship?
An agency is not required to make an accommodation if it can demonstrate that
providing the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on its everyday operations.
An undue hardship is an action that requires "significant difficulty or expense"
in relation to:
- overall size of the agency's program with respect to the number of employees,
number and type of facilities and size of budget;
- type of operation, including the composition and structure of the agency's
workforce; and
- nature and cost of the accommodation.
What is reasonable accommodation?
The term "reasonable accommodation" is a term of art that Congress
defined only through examples of changes or modifications to be made, or items
to be provided, to a qualified individual with a disability. A reasonable accommodation
is adapting the job site or job functions for a qualified person with a disability
to enable an individual with a disability to enjoy equal employment opportunities.
This does not mean that the employer must lower the standards of work for the
position or change the job requirements. There are three categories of reasonable
accommodations:
- Modifications or adjustments to a job application process to permit an individual
with a disability to be considered for a job (such as providing application
forms in alternative formats like large print or Braille);
- Modifications or adjustments necessary to enable a qualified individual
with a disability to perform the essential functions of the job (such as providing
sign language interpreters); and
- Modifications or adjustments that enable employees with disabilities to
enjoy equal benefits and privileges of employment (such as removing physical
barriers in an office cafeteria).
What are examples of a reasonable accommodation?
Reasonable accommodations that can be requested include, but are not limited
to, the following:
- making existing facilities accessible;
- utilizing part-time or modified work schedules;
- adjusting or modifying tests, training materials, or policies;
- providing qualified readers and interpreters;
- acquiring or modifying equipment; and
- reassigning an individual to a vacant position for which the employee
must be qualified.
Can an accommodation involve readers, interpreters, and/or personal assistants?
Agencies may employ personal assistants for employees with disabilities, including
those with visual and hearing impairments, under authority provided by 5 U.S.C.
3102. In addition, Section 3102(d) of the law authorizes the payment of pay
and allowances for an individual who accompanies an employee with a disability
on official travel. Specifically, the statute provides that the head of an agency
may authorize the payment to an individual to accompany or assist (or both)
the employee with a disability for all or a portion of the travel period involved.
The statute further provides that the accompanying individual shall be considered
an employee, but only for purposes of the Federal Employees' Compensation Act
and the Federal Tort Claims Act. Accordingly, 5 U.S.C. Section 3110, which provides
that a public official may not appoint, employ, promote, advance or advocate
for a relative (as defined in the section), does not prohibit pay to an accompanying
spouse.
How can an individual request a reasonable accommodation?
An individual can make either an oral or written request for accommodation.
To request an accommodation, an individual may use "plain English" and does
not need to mention the Rehabilitation Act or "reasonable accommodation." A
family member, friend, health professional, or other representative may request
a reasonable accommodation on behalf of an individual with a disability. An
individual with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation at any time
during the application process or during the period of employment. The request
for a reasonable accommodation must be made for a reason related to a medical
condition.
What if the request is denied?
All denials of reasonable accommodation requests must be made in writing, and
the decision must specify the reason for the denial. The denial should be written
in plain language, clearly stating the specific reasons for the denial. After
denying a request, the individual must be informed that s/he has the right to
file an EEO complaint, has the right to pursue any applicable union grievance
and informal alternative dispute resolution.
What are an individual's responsibilities?
Employees or applicants with disabilities who need reasonable accommodation
are responsible for making their needs known to the appropriate official. Supervisors
are responsible for properly responding to requests for accommodation from their
employees. When an individual decides to request accommodation, the individual
or his/her representative must let the employer know that s/he needs an adjustment
or change at work for a reason related to a medical condition.
The employer and the individual with a disability should engage in an informal
process to clarify what the individual needs and identify the appropriate reasonable
accommodation.
How is a reasonable accommodation decision made?
Decisions on making accommodations are made on a case-by-case basis. Executive
Order 16134, however, requires each Federal agency to establish effective written
procedures to facilitate the provision of reasonable accommodation for applicants
and employees. Contact specific agencies for information on their decision-making
process.
What about alternative accommodations?
An individual who is granted a reasonable accommodation might not receive the
exact form of accommodation requested. The deciding official has the discretion
to identify reasonable and appropriate alternatives.
OPM Website on Employee Relations - Reasonable Accomodations
How do some Federal agencies manage and fund reasonable accommodations?
- The
provides assistive technology accommodations and
services to persons with disabilities at the Department of Defense and over
38 Federal agencies (upon the request of the head of the Federal agency) at
no cost. CAP supports accessibility efforts, including the successful implementation
of Section 508’s electronic and information technology accessibility
requirements.
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture established the
to support
the Department with assistive technology and ergonomic solutions. Needs assessments
and demonstrations conducted by the Center provide federal employees with
disabilities equal access to electronic and information technology essential
in today's work force.
- The
is a
one-stop shop to ensure that DOT employees with disabilities can participate
fully in all aspects of the Department's work, programs and services. DRC
provides reasonable accommodations, assessments, and assistive technology.
- The provides
support services to Education managers and supervisors in determining how
technology can be used to meet the reasonable accommodation needs of employees
with disabilities. These services include needs assessments, specialty equipment
and software demonstrations. The Assistive Technology Team also studies software
development issues pertaining to Education accessibility requirements for
product implementation in Department-wide systems.
- The U.S. Department of Education (ED) Disability Policy/Section
504 Reasonable Accommodation staff within the Office of Management's Work/Life
Programs Group (WLPG) promotes disability awareness and assists managers and
staff with reasonable accommodation and program access needs. Having disability
access resources available reflects ED's ongoing commitment to provide full
access to all customers and employees with disabilities. These resources include
services such as Braille and audiotape versions of ED publications, funding
for reasonable accommodations, and guidance
on a range of accessibility questions. Other offices within
ED also provide resources and work closely with the Disability Policy/Section
504 Reasonable Accommodation staff to deliver disability-access services to
all Department customers and employees who need them. For more information,
call the Section 504/Reasonable Accommodation office at 202-401-8545 Voice
or 202-260-8874 TTY or call the Work/Life Programs Group main number at 202-401-2905
Voice/TTY via Federal Relay Service.
- The Department of Commerce - Committee on Resources for Electronic Accessible Technology to End Users (CREATE) offers planning and coordination of activities that increase awareness of assistive technology for people with disabilities. For more information call (202) 482-3201 (Voice) or (202) 482-4675 (TTY).
- The ,
Assistive Technologies Support Team is the primary point of contact for employees
with disabilities at headquarters. The Team provides coordination, responsibility,
and oversight for all support interfaces with individual employees with disabilities
or impairments.
- The Department of Housing and Urban Development - Housing Accessibility Resource Program (HARP) maintains an information library containing extensive reference materials and resources. HARP also provides an opportunity for managers and employees to utilize the TARGET Center at the USDA to view and evaluate assistive technology. For more information call (202) 708-0288 x268 (Voice) or (202) 708-4401 (TTY).
- The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) - The Microcomputer Training Program for Persons with Disabilities (MTPPD) provides cost-reimbursable assistive technology training for U.S. veterans. It also provides product assessment, demonstrations, consultations, and facility tours. Currently, MTPPD is helping VA implement the Nationwide Office Automation which will allow all users access to the information environment. For more information, call (202) 273-6542 (Voice) or fax to (202) 273-6555.
- The Internal Revenue
Service - Information Resources Accessibility Program (IRAP)
Office provides accessible electronic information technology to customers
with disabilities. Associates offer consultations, technical support, demonstrations,
and facility tours. IRAP also tests IRS systems and products to ensure accessibility
to and compatibility with assistive technology. To find out more, visit their
website, or call (202) 283-0283 (Voice) or (202) 283-6566/67 (TTY).
- The Social Security Administration
(SSA), Office of Civil Rights and Equal Opportunity (OCREO), provides adaptive
devices to accommodate SSA's employees with disabilities. SSA believes that
having a centralized account to purchase adaptive devices encourages managers
to hire more people with disabilities since they would not have to deplete
local resources to purchase expensive adaptive equipment.
A central component of SSA tracks
the technologies that are compatible with SSA's systems. In 1997, SSA embarked
on a four-year project to provide personal computers with mainframe emulation
to all SSA employees which would be connected by local and wide area networks.
- The works
hard to ensure that people with disabilities have equal access to telecommunications.
The DRO, housed in the FCC's Consumer Information Bureau, provides technical
assistance to consumers, businesses, and government agencies on their rights
and responsibilities to facilitate disability access in the foundations and
frontiers of telecommunications.
What training and information resources
are available?
For specific training packages for
new managers, the offers
the following courses:
- Human Resource Management for
Supervisors and Managers
- EEO -- Its Place in the Federal
Government
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