Disability and Employment
The ADA is a civil rights law intended to provide equal access to education, employment, transportation, and telecommunications to individuals with disabilities. In the employment context under the ADA, a disability is a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities. To be a qualified employee under the ADA, you must be an individual who, with or without a reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of the employment position.
Reasonable Accommodations
A reasonable accommodation is any change or adjustment in the workplace or the way job duties are customarily performed that provides an equal employment opportunity to an individual with a disability.
A modification or adjustment to a job is reasonable if it is effective in meeting the needs of the individual and does not pose an undue hardship on the employer, fundamentally change the essential functions of the job, or lower performance standards. The employer does not have to provide the accommodation the employee wants, as long as it provides an effective reasonable accommodation that meets the needs of the employee.
For example, a reasonable accommodation may include:
• Buying or modifying equipment or devices
• Modifying work schedules
• Changing the physical layout of an office
• Training materials
The accommodation process requires a case-by-case, fact-intensive analysis into the employee's lived experience with their disability and a review of the essential functions of the employee's job.
Requesting accommodations
To request workplace accommodations based on a disability:
1) Submit the online request form; and
2) Submit the ADA questionnaire form or any documentation from a medical provider that (1) is from the past 12 months; (2) describes the condition/symptoms; (3) provides a duration (if known); and (4) describes the functional limitations caused by that condition.
Upload medical documentation at the bottom of the request form or email to ADAaccess@tulane.edu
The Interactive Process
After submitting the accommodation request, the Office for Campus Accessibility will schedule a meeting with the employee to discuss the employee's disability, the functional limitations caused by the employee's disability, and the employee's requested job accommodations.
Next, the Office for Campus Accessibility will a schedule a meeting with the employee's supervisor to discuss the employee's requested job accommodations, explain that the employee has a disability, and describe the barriers that the employee faces in accessing their employment. This is called the interactive process, and collaboration from the employee and the supervisor is essential.
Modifications to the implemented accommodation may occur, given the flexible nature of disabilities (e.g., flare-ups, stressors, new medication, or treatments) and the evolving nature of job duties and operations. At any time, employees can contact the Office for Campus Accessibility to modify the accommodations.
Confidentiality
Medical and disability-related information is kept confidential and separate from the employee's HR file. There is no requirement for employees to inform coworkers about a disability or the need for an accommodation. While coworkers may be aware that an employee is receiving an accommodation because it may be obvious, coworkers are not entitled to know why. Supervisors are encouraged to limit the information they acquire about an employee's disability, and often do not need to know the specifics of an employee's medical condition to determine whether a requested accommodation will impose undue hardship.
For Frequently Asked Questions, please visit the Human Resources Benefits website.
