On July 26, 1990 the US Congress enacted the Americans With
Disabilities Act (ADA), with the stated goal of ending discrimination against
and harassment of the disabled. Its four titles dealt with four separate access
areas: employment; state & local government; public accommodations; telecommunications. Recently Congress passed an amendment to ADA,
Amendment Act (ADAAA).
The ADA prohibited discrimination against individuals who
have or are perceived to have a disability, and imposed obligations for access
and inclusion. The most immediate and obvious consequence was that buildings
which did not already have wheelchair ramps, elevators, handicapped-accessible
restrooms and wide electrically-controlled entrance doors installed those
features. Persons with limited physical mobility have found things a bit
easier. But, two decades out from passage and implementation of the ADA,
obstacles to the successful employment of disabled individuals remain.
Many able-bodied workers are uncomfortable around their
disabled peers, for a variety of reasons. One major reason is simple lack of
knowledge and understanding of the disability; the unknown is fearsome. They
may also be reluctant to engage the disabled person in conversation or even to
make eye contact, for fear of seeming rude or intrusive, or of inadvertently
saying something offensive. This lack of engagement may not rise to the level
of disability harassment in the workplace, but it can cause the disabled worker
to feel shunned and excluded.
Then, there is the stigma of disability. There is the
occasional perception that the disabled worker is in some way responsible for
causing his/her condition. There is the usually inaccurate and irrational fear
that the disability might be contagious. These are only some of the attitudinal
barriers faced by persons who have visible, obvious disabilities such as use of
an assistive mobility device or loss of a limb. Persons with invisible,
non-obvious disabilities face an entirely different set of challenges.
Invisible or non-obvious disabilities include many conditions
ranging from mental illness to epilepsy, heart disease, asthma, diabetes, to
name just a few. The biggest challenge for these workers is deciding when or
whether to disclose the existence of the disability. Even when their condition
limits their ability to perform job tasks, such workers may be reluctant to ask
for the reasonable accommodation to which they are entitled under the ADA. Some
of these workers are not aware that they can ask for accommodation; many of
them do not even consider themselves disabled. Those who are aware of their
rights under ADA may refrain from exercising those rights for fear of possible
disability harassment in the workplace, or because they do not wish to be seen
as asking for or receiving special treatment.
The solution to most of these situations is education. The
disabled worker needs to be aware of the provisions of the ADA, and also needs
enough knowledge and awareness of her/his own condition to be able to
articulate specific barriers and know what types of accommodations to request.
Most disabled persons are taught these things as a part of their rehabilitation
programs. In the workplace, human resources staff and line supervisors need to
have a basic understanding of the worker's condition and what that worker is and
is not able to do, and must be willing to be flexible about reasonable
accommodations. Frequently, as part of the return-to-work process, vocational
rehabilitation professionals will come into the workplace and provide some of
the necessary education.
A normal human impulse is the desire to help someone who is
perceived as needing it. This can lead to awkward and or disrespectful workplace
situations if unwanted or unneeded help is imposed on the disabled worker; such
offers can be perceived as patronizing. The best way for co-workers to handle
this is to simply ask the disabled worker if help is wanted.
Common courtesy and treating others as one would wish to be
treated go a long way; those are the basic concepts of all etiquette.
If you don’t know the answers to the following questions
please contact us. We have a strategic
partner who is very knowledgeable and experienced in assisting employers in
effectively and legally managing workplace-related ADA and ADAAA situations:
How
to I determine if this request for an accommodation is "reasonable"?
Can
I terminate an employee who has a disability but has a performance issue?
When
is enough, "enough" in terms of providing accommodations?
Where
does ADA and FMLA intersect and how do we handle leave requests?
We
need help in understanding the intersection between the various federal laws
such as ADA, Worker's Compensation, FMLA and OSHA.
Can
we centralize requests for Reasonable Accommodations and if so, how?
What
questions can I ask during an interview?
How
do we provide an accommodation for someone who won't officially disclose their
disability?
Are
we responsible for hiring a sign language interpreter during meetings and
trainings? If so, for which ones and when?
Are
there tax incentives available when hiring a person with a disability or
conducting barrier removal and if so, what are they?
What
types of medical information can we request of an individual with a disability
and when?
What
do we do when a reasonable accommodation causes unrest among other employees?
How
do we go about implementing an accommodation request when we don't have the
resources or information to identify proper assistive technology or other
equipment?
How
do we properly work with employees who have hidden disabilities such as psychiatric,
diabetes, epilepsy, etc.?
How do we appropriately
market job opportunities to individuals with disabilities?