Reassessing remote work accommodations
The pandemic caused employers to send many employees home to work. After the pandemic subsided, employers began calling employees back into the workplace. In response, some employees asked that the employer allow them to continue working from home as an accommodation under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
More time has passed, giving employers a chance to wonder whether those employees still need remote work accommodations. As such, employers could have reassessed the need, or might plan to reassess the need in the future.
Last month, we asked subscribers if they had reassessed or would reassess remote work accommodations. Here is how the votes stacked up:
- 32% - No, we didn’t provide any such accommodations, so no need to reassess.
- 21% - No, we will leave them as they are for now.
- 15% -Yes, we have begun to reassess whether remote work accommodations continue to be effective and necessary.
- 0% - Yes, we will begin to reassess whether remote work accommodations continue to be effective and necessary.
- 32% - We have already made such reassessments.
Analysis
Based on the results of the survey, most employees didn’t provide accommodations or had already reassessed accommodations. Other employers choose to leave accommodations as they are, or have just begun to reassess.
No respondents indicated that they will begin to reassess in the future.
To reassess or not
Employers don’t have to reassess accommodations if they don’t want to or feel the need to. If circumstances have changed, however, they might want to. Such circumstances could include changes to:
- An employee’s condition,
- Job requirements,
- Operational needs,
- A related law.
If employers review whether remote work remains reasonable, they might need to explore alternative accommodations. Employers get to choose which accommodation to provide, as long as it’s effective.
Alternative accommodations might include, for example:
- Assistive devices,
- Modified equipment,
- Environmental modifications (sound, smell, light, etc.),
- Job restructuring, or
- Modified or flexible work scheduling.
They can also include reducing remote work, combined with in-office accommodations, provided the result is still reasonable and effective. The accommodation employers are to provide will depend on the employee’s limitations in relation to the job’s essential functions, as well as which ones might pose an undue hardship for the employer.
Employers shouldn’t automatically rescind all remote work accommodations. They must look at each case individually. While they might rescind some, they might need to provide alternative accommodations.
Key to remember: Employers may want to reevaluate whether employees still need remote work as an accommodation, or if an alternative would be effective.