ADA Question
sobekneferu
22 Posts
Sorry for posting this here. I posted on the ADA page and didn't get any responses. Thought this page would get more traffic. We have an employee who is trying to manage her diabetes through diet and medication (not insulin). When she was first diagnosed, she started attending an exercise class that was held only at certain times of the week. She also has to eat at certain times of the day and check her glucose levels frequently. Her supervisor assigned her to teach a group (I work in a domestic violence shelter) at night, which tampered with her regular schedule of meals and glucose checks. It also eliminated one of the few times she could go exercise. She asked that her schedule not be changed, and gave her supervisor's supervisor a letter from her dietician. She was denied accomodation because her supervisor said the shelter "sometimes got busy at night, and they needed all four shelter staff to work there instead of teaching group." She had offered to teach groups other days of the week. Since that time this employee has been having increasing problems managing her diabetes. She would now like to go to a support group that takes place twice a month on Tuesday nights. I would like the agency to accomodate her because we have accomodated every other request, no matter how absurd it sounded, and I feel that we're headed for a headache (this person is a lawyer!). I need some back-up though. Has anyone had a similar experience, and can you share with me what you did and what the outcome was?
Comments
Remember, if reasonable accommodation is needed the purpose is to allow the employee to peform the essential duties of the job or to perform the essential dutes at a later time (this is what a leave is for under ADA) with or without further reasonable accommodation. I don't know whether this latest program she is seeking an accommodation for has anything to do with that purpose.
Take a look at EEOC's guidances on ADA, reasonable accommodation and undue hardship. It may help clarify the issues for you.
[url]http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/accommodation.html[/url] This one addresses issues as a small employer
[url]http://www.eeoc.gov/docs/accommodation.html[/url] This one addresses issues as a large employer
Based on this statement, to be consistent, I would try to accomodate (do what we could to help the meployee) if feasible and not get into ada issues.
Stephen
Anne Williams
Attorney Editor
M. Lee Smith Publishers, LLC
Sobek