Mission
A Model for Making a Reasonable Accommodation
ADA/FMLA/Workers’ Comp Seminar
Does the ADA Apply to You?
Please Tell Us What You Think
Upcoming Conferences
Additional Information About JAN
ADA Award
ADA-OHIO provides information, technical assistance, and training to promote voluntary compliance and positive implementation of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).
The principles of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) are simple, but often applying them is not. Even employers who believe in and want to comply are confused by the requirement to make reasonable accommodations. When an employee asks for an accommodation, a company must determine whether the person has a disability, if accommodation is possible, and how to accomplish it. Sometimes the disability is familiar and the accommodation is obvious. In other situations, a company may not even be aware of the disability. Perhaps neither the worker nor the manager knows an appropriate accommodation. The law doesn’t offer sample formats, nor does it require written documents in order to facilitate the application process. The following model developed by the Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission has been found to be a helpful starting point.
Employee’s Request (The employee submits this to and discusses it with the supervisor. If the employee does not have a comfortable relationship with the supervisor, a company may allow the employee to submit it directly to the HR department.)
1. Describe your condition and how it substantially limits your ability to perform a major life activity. If your disability is not observable, you may have to provide a Treating Source’s Report.
2. Describe the limitations caused by your condition that affect your ability to perform an essential function of your job.
3. Describe the essential job function affected.
4. Describe the reasonable accommodation you are requesting. If you don’t know what accommodation you need, leave this blank.
Supervisor’s Report (The supervisor submits this to and discusses it with the HR Department.)
1. After discussing the request with the employee, describe both the steps taken toward resolution and the resolution, if any.
2. Is the employee’s condition observable? If so, describe the observation.
3. Does the employee’s condition limit his or her ability to perform an essential job function? If so, describe how.
4. Describe the essential job function affected.
5. Have you and the employee identified a reasonable accommodation? If so, describe it.
Treating Source’s Report (When required, the employee submits this request to the physician, therapist, etc. The completed form is returned to the employee who submits it to the supervisor along with the Employee’s Request. This form may be prefaced by saying: I am asking for a reasonable accommodation on my job. My employer needs information from you about my functional limitation and how the limitation affects my ability to perform an essential function of my job. Please answer the following and return to me.)
1. Describe the nature and severity of the condition causing the employee to seek a reasonable accommodation on the job.
2. If this condition is substantially limiting, describe the major life activity (e.g., walking, seeing, thinking) that is substantially limited by the employee’s condition. Give specific descriptive examples if possible.
3. Is this condition permanent? If not, how long is it expected to last?
4. If this condition is expected to change, describe the change expected and the time frame within which the change is expected.
5. Describe the limitation that affects the employee’s ability to perform a specific job function. Give specific descriptive examples if possible.
6. Describe the extent to which the employee is limited in performing the job function. Be as specific a possible.
No policy, process, or form can guarantee that addressing every employee’s accommodation needs will be simple. The following free resources are available for help:
- ADA-OHIO - (800) ADA-OHIO
- David Cameron, ADA Coordinator, RSC - (877) 291-0219
- Great Lakes ADA & Accessible IT Center - (800) 949-4ADA
- Job Accommodation Network (JAN) - (800) 526-7234. Please see additional information about JAN within this newsletter.
(Adapted from an article written by David Cameron, RSC ADA Coordinator)
ADA/FMLA/Worker’s Comp Seminar
ADA-OHIO is sponsoring a seminar entitled, ”Demystifying the Interplay of the ADA with FMLA and Workers’ Compensation,” from 12:30 PM - 4:30 PM, at The Blackwell on the campus of The Ohio State University in Columbus, OH. Attorneys from EEOC, private practice, and Workers’ Compensation will help participants understand how these laws complement each other and how to assure the requirements of all are met. This program has been approved for 3.25 credit hours toward PHR/SPHR recertification through the Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI). CLE credits are pending. A wine and cheese reception will follow from 4:30 PM - 6:00 PM. The seminar is a pre-conference option to the Multiple Perspectives Conference on April 12-13. Please contact ADA-OHIO for more information.
DOES THE ADA APPLY TO YOU?
According to the ADA Title I Technical Manual, private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies, labor unions, and joint labor-management committees must comply with employment provisions of the ADA. The ADA calls these "covered entities." An employer cannot discriminate against qualified applicants and employees on the basis of disability. The ADA's requirements apply to employers with 15 or more employees.
The definition of "employer" includes persons who are agents of the employer, such as managers, supervisors, foremen, or who act for the employer, such as agencies used to conduct background checks on candidates. The employer is responsible for actions of such persons that may violate the law. These coverage requirements are similar to those of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Please Tell Us What You Think
To help us provide you with timely, appropriate, and helpful information, please tell us what you think. Email us at adaohio@aol, or call us at 800-ADA-OHIO (800-232-6446). Please tell us if our newsletter is helpful, and make suggestions for improvements and future content. Thanks!
UPCOMING CONFERENCES
(1) “Multiple Perspectives on Access, Inclusion & Disability” will be held April 12-13, 2004, at The Ohio State University’s Pfhal Executive Education and Conference Center. For more information, contact Scott Lissner at ada-osu@osu.edu, 614-292-6207 (V), 614-688-8605 (TTY), or visit http://ada.osu.edu. An ADA/FMLA/Workers’ Comp Seminar is being offered by ADA-OHIO as a pre-conference option. (See front page of this newsletter.)
(2) Solidarity 2005, Ohio’s largest conference by and for people with disabilities, is scheduled for May 11-13, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel and Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio. ADA-OHIO will be sponsoring an ADA tract covering all five titles of the ADA. For more information, contact The Meeting Connection at lokendtmc@cs.com, 614-888-2568 (V), or visit DNOS.org.
(3) Each third Tuesday of the month from 2-3:30 PM EST, the Great Lakes ADA and Accessible IT Center in Chicago presents a distance learning session via speaker phone. Registration is required. If you are interested in participating in these sessions, no matter where you live in the U.S., or if you wish to be a host for these sessions, please let us know. More information regarding the schedule for the sessions can be found at www.adagreatlakes.org.
Additional Information About JAN
Read JAN's (Job Accommodation Network) Publication on Tax Incentives (http://www.jan.wvu.edu/media/tax.html), and visit JAN's funding links (http://www.jan.wvu.edu/links/funding.html) for additional information on tax incentives and funding available for accommodations.
JAN has collected cost and benefit data from its users. The data suggest that more than half of all accommodations cost less than $500. Their statistics also show most employers report financial benefits from providing accommodations through reductions in costs of training and insurance and increases in productivity. Source: http://www.jan.wvu.edu/portals/faqs.html#fund
JAN is an international toll-free consulting service providing information about job accommodations and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Contact JAN by telephone at 800-526-7234 (V/TTY) or by email at jan@jan.wvu.edu.
ADA AWARD
Nancy and Cameron James and Mills-James Productions are recipients of the second annual ADA Award presented by ADA-OHIO and sponsored by the Ohio Developmental Disabilities Council. The award is presented to individuals and/or organizations who have made significant contributions in support of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Over the years, Mr. and Mrs. James and Mills-James Productions have supported many causes. They have been particularly instrumental in promoting an awareness of dyslexia and the rights under the ADA of individuals with dyslexia. The award will be presented at a luncheon on April 12, 2005, in conjunction with the Multiple Perspectives Conference.
This newsletter was published through a special grant from the Great Lakes ADA & Accessible IT Center and through support from Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission.
Alternative formats of this newsletter are available upon request.