Does the Federal Government Consider Me Disabled? Reasonable Accommodation Part VI
Federal employee attorney Eric Pines tackles whether a federal employee will be considered disabled. In this series: Does the Federal Government Consider Me Disabled? We lay out the definitions of disabled under the Rehabilitation Act. In this post we will focus on whether a federal employee is entitled to his or her ideal accommodation? According to the Rehabilitation Act/ ADA says the answer is: Yes, but… not necessarily with the exact accommodation that you are seeking.
If you are a federal employee who is disabled and you can show that you can perform the essential functions of your job with or without a reasonable accommodation and the agency cannot show that your request causes them an undue hardship then the agency must provide you with a reasonable accommodation! However (and this is a big however), the agency does not have to provide you with the exact accommodation that you are seeking. All the agency is required to provide you with is an effective accommodation or an accommodation that gets the job done!
In other words, let’s say that an employee is suffering from anxiety or agoraphobia (fear of crowds), and requests to work at home full time in order to avoid large crowds of people. You can rest assured that the agency will likely argue that you are not entitled to work at home full time. Generally, the agency will argue that there are certain functions of your job that must be performed at the office, like meeting employees or meeting with your supervisor.
If the agency offers the employee a quiet office away from people this arguably can be seen as an effective accommodation. Unless the employee can obtain a doctor’s diagnosis and letter stating that they can only work at home and any work in an office setting would be inadequate the employee may not be able to justify holding out for an accommodation of working at home. This would be a close call and would require medical documentation and opinion and a solid argument that the essential functions of the job could be performed at home.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Federal Employee Attorney/ Lawyer Eric Pines
The Law Offices of Eric L. Pines, PLLC provides comprehensive legal representation with a sole focus on Federal Employees, Federal Labor Unions and Federal Agencies. Specializing in Disability related issues like OPM Disability, Disability Discrimination and MSPB and EEO Cases.
If you believe you are disabled, want to find out if you are disabled or if you have a need for a reasonable accommodation and want to find out whether your agency is obligated to provide you with a reasonable accommodation please feel free to contact the Law Offices of Eric L. Pines, PLLC.
Copyright The Law Offices of Eric L. Pines, PLLC
More information about The Law Offices of Eric L. Pines, PLLC
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
In other words, let’s say that an employee is suffering from anxiety or agoraphobia (fear of crowds), and requests to work at home full time in order to avoid large crowds of people. You can rest assured that the agency will likely argue that you are not entitled to work at home full time. Generally, the agency will argue that there are certain functions of your job that must be performed at the office, like meeting employees or meeting with your supervisor.
If the agency offers the employee a quiet office away from people this arguably can be seen as an effective accommodation. Unless the employee can obtain a doctor’s diagnosis and letter stating that they can only work at home and any work in an office setting would be inadequate the employee may not be able to justify holding out for an accommodation of working at home. This would be a close call and would require medical documentation and opinion and a solid argument that the essential functions of the job could be performed at home.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Federal Employee Attorney/ Lawyer Eric Pines
The Law Offices of Eric L. Pines, PLLC provides comprehensive legal representation with a sole focus on Federal Employees, Federal Labor Unions and Federal Agencies. Specializing in Disability related issues like OPM Disability, Disability Discrimination and MSPB and EEO Cases.
If you believe you are disabled, want to find out if you are disabled or if you have a need for a reasonable accommodation and want to find out whether your agency is obligated to provide you with a reasonable accommodation please feel free to contact the Law Offices of Eric L. Pines, PLLC.
Copyright The Law Offices of Eric L. Pines, PLLC
More information about The Law Offices of Eric L. Pines, PLLC
View all articles published by The Law Offices of Eric L. Pines, PLLC
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
