Human Resource Blog

Federal Laws for Workers with Disabilities

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I’ve heard that under federal law, employers must make “reasonable accommodations” for disabled employees. What does that mean?

The primary federal law regarding workers with disabilities is the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act (or ADA) which was passed in 1990. Under this law, employers must make “reasonable accommodations” for a worker with disabilities. What constitutes “reasonable accommodations” will vary slightly from job to job, and from employer to employer.

Let’s look at a few examples. In many organizations, salespeople drive their personal car to appointments with clients, and are reimbursed for the mileage. An employee with epilepsy may not be able to drive. In this case, allowing the employee to take buses or taxis to sales appointments with clients, and to be reimbursed for such expenses, would be a “reasonable accommodation.” Even though it might be slightly more expensive to reimburse the salesperson for taxis instead of mileage, that’s considered reasonable under the law. However, hiring a limousine and a personal driver to be available to the employee each work day would not be a reasonable accommodation. That would likely be many times more expensive than the current mileage arrangement.

Another “reasonable accommodation” would pertain to adding wheelchair ramp. For many small employers, adding a wheelchair ramp to provide access for a disabled employee might cost less than $400. That would be considered a reasonable accommodation. However, suppose the employer is in a rented office on the 3^rd floor of a vintage city building without an elevator. There’s no room for a ramp, because the building is in a crowded city. Adding an elevator would cost the employer at least $20,000, for improvements to a building that the employer doesn’t even own. In most cases, the court would not find that this was a reasonable accommodation. (Remember, however, that when the building is renovated, the law will likely require that the owner install an elevator to provide handicapped access, even if no one who works in the building is disabled.)

Prior to the passage of the ADA, employers were under no obligation to make the slightest accommodation for disabled workers. It was perfectly legal for businesses and all types of government agencies to allow design barriers that made workplaces and even public buildings inaccessible for handicapped people. Prior to the ADA, even a simple curb or a few steps at the entrance could prevent a handicapped person from using a building. An important feature of the

ADA law was that all new buildings, and all renovations to older buildings, must make reasonable accommodations for the disabled. Every time you see a wheelchair ramp at the curb…it’s because of this law.

In practice, the best way to approach this problem is simply to ask an employee what accommodations they require. Most will provide the employer with a very specific, practical, cost-effective plan to meet their needs. Hiring disabled workers is a win/win situation for employers because they usually gain an excellent employee.