Question

Employees with disabilities:

What is legislation for people with physical and mental disabilities, What concerted efforts can be made by the leader to remove the misperceptions that exist of workers with disabilities and how does a company determine what are reasonable accommodations and what are not?

Answer 1

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 is the legislation for people with physical and mental disabilities. ADA prohibits employment discrimination against people with disabilities who are otherwise qualified to perform the essential functions of the job. The individual covered under ADA are those who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, has record of such impairment or is regarded as having such impairment. Employers should not discriminate such people in employment if they are able to perform the essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation. There is misperception about the workers with disabilities that they cannot perform the jobs like other employees. Employers are required to provide reasonable accommodation for the employees with disability that will help them to perform the job functions if it would not impose undue hardship on the employer’s business. The employer should provide accommodations like altering job application procedures, modifying the physical environment, providing flexible work schedules etc based on the disability. This will help them to enjoy equal employment opportunities in workplace and improve their performance. The reasonable accommodation will differ for people with different disabilities. The company can determine the type of accommodation based on the disability and the essential job functions. For example, while conducting a job interview for a deaf applicant, the employer may provide reasonable accommodation in the form of a sign language interpreter to understand the capabilities of the applicant. The employer should consider the employee preference while deciding on the type of accommodation. But the employer need not provide reasonable accommodation if it causes undue hardship on the business or the action involves significant difficulty or expense for the employer.