HR teams are seeing more employees speak up and ask for what they need. From mental health and remote work to age-related changes and disability support, accommodation requests are rising. In fact, our recent employer survey found that 60% of HR leaders saw an increase last year.
When an employee asks for an accommodation for their disability, they trigger the protections of Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). HR must respond quickly to remain compliant.
But compliance isn’t the only priority that matters. When handling ADA requests, HR’s processes need to create fairness, respect, and compassion.
Too often, HR teams attempt to achieve this without any formal system or support from technology. When HR is buried in cases, details inevitably fall through the cracks. When this happens, the consequences can range from frustrated and dissatisfied employees to lawsuits with hefty fines. Both ends of this spectrum matter.
This post details the practices every HR team should have in place to handle ADA accommodations fairly, quickly, and compliantly.
The Accommodations Employees Request Today
Accommodations once centered on straightforward support: a chair, an ergonomic keyboard, a job assistant. With the arrival of the pandemic, employees began to request a different kind of support.
What is a reasonable accommodation? Under the ADA, a reasonable accommodation is a workplace adjustment that allows someone with a disability to do their job.
Today, HR professionals report that the top-requested accommodation is remote work, according to AbsenceSoft data. The next most popular request is intermittent leave or reduced schedules. Only 35% of accommodation requests fall into the category of specialized equipment or ergonomic changes.
It’s worth noting, however, that while many employees are asking for a change in work arrangements, plenty of employees continue to request more traditional accommodations. HR needs to be prepared to offer up both kinds of support.
Accommodations are also changing according to trends in employee health and well-being. Employees are opening up about physical and mental challenges, in addition to chronic conditions. They’re also exploring how neurodiversity impacts major life activities. These conditions typically activate the ADA’s protections, allowing employees to request accommodations as needed.
The Hallmarks of a Compliant and Fair ADA Process
When an employee asks for a reasonable accommodation, their request should trigger the interactive process.
What is the interactive process? The interactive process is an ongoing conversation between employers and employees that explores a worker’s needs and pinpoints a suitable accommodation.
While the interactive process is not always required under the ADA — it’s not warranted in situations where the appropriate accommodation is obvious, for instance — the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recommends employers use it. The process provides employers a chance to learn about an employee’s limitations, analyze the job in question, and assess potential accommodations.
The ADA doesn’t mandate a standard approach for the interactive process. But it’s important that employers create a predictable experience for employees. When employers develop a process that’s both consistent and transparent, employees can trust they’ll be treated fairly.
We recommend that employers engage in an interactive process with six steps:
- Step 1: Recognize an accommodations request. Employees aren’t required to use the language of the ADA to get support. Someone may simply mention they’re struggling with their job due to a health problem. No matter how the employee phrases their request, employers should respond as quickly as possible.
- Step 2: Gather information. Next, employers should uncover the employee’s limitation and how it impacts their job duties. The employee is usually the best source of information on their disability, but employers can make inquiries about an employee’s medical condition when it’s absolutely necessary.
- Step 3: Explore accommodation options. The next step is to brainstorm potential accommodations. Again, the employee plays an important role here and should have an opportunity to offer suggestions. The employee’s medical provider may also have helpful ideas.
- Step 4: Choose an accommodation. Employers aren’t required to choose the accommodation preferred by the employee, but it’s a good idea to select the employee’s choice when possible. Employers may offer a trial period for accommodations if it’s unclear whether they’ll be successful.
- Step 5: Implement the accommodation. Check in with the employee to make sure the accommodation is in place and functioning.
- Step 6: Monitor the accommodation. Ask the employee if the accommodation is helpful and encourage them to flag any issues that arise.
Where ADA Requests Can Go Wrong
The interactive process features interweaving, back-and-forth communication. It’s challenging to track one employee’s journey through the interactive process — and even more so at volume. It’s no surprise, then, that only 55% of requests go through the full interactive process. When HR is tracking requests manually, they get lost in the shuffle all too easily.
Some requests are denied for good reasons. An employee’s condition may not qualify for a disability, or the accommodation they requested may create undue hardship for the employer.
But many other requests hit a snag and fail to come to fruition. Sometimes, it’s due to a delay: a manager forgets about an email or HR is too busy to follow up. These are understandable mistakes, but they can create serious consequences. The ADA requires employers to respond to accommodations requests quickly, which means that HR can’t let requests fall by the wayside.
Other times, a request may be sidelined for more nefarious reasons, like retaliation. It’s important to understand that it’s illegal for employers to retaliate against employees who request an accommodation for their disability. This means employers cannot take adverse actions against employees — including delaying their request — because they asked for an accommodation.
Below, we explore a few of the most common ADA roadblocks:
- Unclear request protocols. Nearly three-quarters of employees don’t know how to make an accommodations request, according to AbsenceSoft data. Employers should provide training materials that show employees how to make a request. Organizations can make the process especially easy by offering a self-service portal like AbsenceSoft’s.
- Misled managers. AbsenceSoft data has revealed that half of employees go to managers to ask for an accommodation. It’s a logical choice, but many managers aren’t trained in the ADA. Managers may ignore, deny or fumble an employee’s request — mistakes that can frustrate employees and land organizations in legal trouble.
- Manual tracking. When an organization lacks a system to centralize requests, communications, and the resulting documentation, it’s easy for any of those elements to fall through the cracks. When the chain of communication is broken, a request may never resurface — and the employee may never get the help they need.
Can your accommodations process stand up to real employee stories? Take AbsenceSoft’s quiz to find out!
Best Practices HR Teams Can Rely On
Here are some best practices that will help your team manage accommodations with fairness, efficiency, and compassion:
- Train managers: Managers need to understand what the ADA is, who it applies to, and what it provides. Most importantly, however, managers need to know that they should send anything that looks like an accommodations request directly to HR.
- Document everything: HR should take note of every accommodations request — even if it’s informal. It should also take care to record every response to establish a record of compliance.
- Prioritize consistency: Implement internal checklists to make sure every accommodations request kicks off a similar interactive process.
- Follow deadlines: The ADA doesn’t require specific timelines like other workplace laws. But employers should consider setting up their own timelines to make sure employees receive consistent, timely experiences.
- Promote privacy: With tools like AbsenceSoft’s self-service portal, employees can disclose their disability discreetly.
How can I create an accommodations process that’s fair? Most employers want to manage their accommodations fairly. But fairness isn’t just about intent: it’s cultivated through consistent action, timely follow-up, and clear communication.
Technology That Supports Compliance and Empathy
The rapid rise of artificial intelligence has led many to worry that technology will eliminate the human touch where it’s needed. In accommodations management, however, technology improves the human experience by supporting compliance and enabling empathy.
When employers use platforms like AbsenceSoft, they create a strong foundation for accommodations management. These platforms keep employers organized so they can respond quickly and compliantly when an employee needs help. They ensure that no case falls through the cracks by sending automated reminders and tracking cases.
Rather than removing the human touch, automation allows HR professionals to be more compassionate toward employees who are struggling. The right technology allows HR teams to be efficient and effective — even as caseloads climb.
A Fair and Compliant Process Is Your Best Protection
The ADA can feel a little vague: rather that offer prescriptive rules, it gives employers a framework of requirements with flexibility to offer employees what they really need. Employers should feel like they’re taking a risk to meet the ADA’s obligations. Accommodations processes should be developed so that following them ensures organizations do right by their people.
The best technology supports these processes so that both employees and HR teams are protected. At AbsenceSoft, we’ve built our accommodations platform so that every request submitted gives way to a process that is streamlined, documented, and productive.
As more and more employees ask for support, it’s the perfect time for employers to evaluate their accommodation programming.
- Does your team handle ADA requests the same way every time?
- Do employees have a way to submit requests that is both clear and discreet?
- Are you afraid that requests sometimes fall through the cracks?
Your answers to these questions may signal it’s time for an update. If you’d like to learn more about how AbsenceSoft can upgrade your organization’s approach to accommodations management, book a demo today.