May 15 2024
Josh Goodbaum: Hi, Amanda.
Amanda DeMatteis: Hi, Josh. What are we gonna talk about today?
Goodbaum: Okay, we’ve talked a lot about reasonable accommodations for folks with disabilities, but then we get the question, “I’ve got more than one disability. Can I have more than one accommodation?” or “I’ve got one disability, but I need multiple accommodations for it. Is that okay, or am I limited to one reasonable accommodation at a time?”
DeMatteis: Great question. No, you’re not limited to one reasonable accommodation.
So, let’s just do a quick review. There’s our federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and our state Connecticut Fair Employment Practices Act, which requires the employer to provide a reasonable accommodation to an employee with a qualifying disability or disabilities; you could have more than one, of course.
So, if you are a person living with a disability or disabilities, you can go to your job and say, “Hey, I need X, Y, and/or Z to perform the essential functions of my position.” After you make that type of a request, your employer has an obligation to enter into what’s called an “interactive dialogue” with you – a discussion. A discussion, of course, is two-sided, right? You need to be able to talk to your employer about what you need to do your job. Maybe you need a magnifying lens on your screen because of a vision disability you have. Maybe you need an ergonomic keyboard because of a disability or some carpal tunnel you have with your hands. Maybe you need some lumbar support in a chair. It’s almost endless the amount of reasonable accommodations that you can request, of course, based on what your disability is.
Also, remember it might not just be things or devices in the workplace that can help you do your job better. Maybe it’s that you need some time remote from the office. Maybe you need some time away from the office. There are so many different accommodations that you can request to provide you with the ability to perform the essential functions of your position.
So, best practice is to talk to your doctor. Talk to your doctor about what your diagnosis is, what you need to be able to perform your job, maybe bring your doctor a copy of your job description and say “Hey, doc. This is what I do. This is what I need to be able to do this efficiently and effectively. What can we ask my employer to provide me in order to enable me to do that?” and then the burden kind of shifts over to your employer to work with you to see whether or not they can reasonably meet those accommodation requests or if they have some type of hardship.
If you run into an issue with your employer who is saying, “No, sorry, Josh. Sorry, Amanda. We can’t provide you with this particular accommodation,” come talk to us anytime. We’d be happy to help.
Goodbaum: Really great information, Amanda. I agree with all of it and hopefully, that’s helpful to you out there who are asking for reasonable accommodations. Thanks for watching, and we’ll see you next time.
DeMatteis: Take care.
Posted by Garrison, Levin-Epstein, Fitzgerald & Pirrotti, P.C. in Commentary
Tagged Amanda DeMatteis, Joshua Goodbaum
