How to Ask for Reasonable Accommodation Under the ADA
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and the recent ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) have broadened employment opportunities for persons with disabilities, who are increasingly being recognized as assets to the businesses that hire them.
Under the ADA, employers are required to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities. A reasonable accommodation can be a modification to company policy, the removal of structural barriers, or any reasonable assistive change that enables a disabled worker to perform the essential functions of his job.
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Instructions
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Writing Your Request
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Talk to your doctor. After you submit your request, your employer may want to contact him for information on your disability. Sign a release so he can communicate with your employer.
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Decide what accommodations you will need. Do you need a policy exception to bring a guide dog to work? Do you need an office on the ground floor so you won't have to take the stairs? Or perhaps you need assistive technology, such as speech-activated computer software. If you need ideas, you can search the Job Accommodation Network website (a link is below).
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Write your letter. A sample letter is available at JAN's website (see Resources).
1. Address the letter to your employer, supervisor, manager, or Human Resources director.
2. In the body of the letter, state that you are a person with a disability, and that you are requesting reasonable accommodation under the ADA.
3. List the specific job tasks, situations, or policies that you would like changed, and why you need the changes.
4. Tell your employer that her ideas are also welcome.
5. Include a statement such as: "You may verify my disability by calling [doctor's name] at [doctor's number]. He has my signed release on file, and may discuss my health information."
6. Ask for a response by a certain date.
7. Sign your letter.
8. At the bottom of the letter, use "cc" if you are providing copies to others (your doctor, your counselor at Vocational Rehabilitation, or your boss's superior, for example).
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After you submit your request, allow time for a response. If you do not hear back within a reasonable amount of time, contact your employer.
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Meet with your employer and discuss the best way to meet your needs. Remember that employers are required to provide these accommodations, but they must be "reasonable." A large corporation may be able to make extensive structural modifications, for instance, but this may be impossible for a smaller business. However, you and your employer can discuss ways to meet your needs and for the company to comply with the ADA.
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If your circumstances change, you may need different accommodations at different times. You may then decide what would help you most, and submit a new letter.
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Tips & Warnings
A request for accommodation may be verbal, but it is preferable to put it in writing, to establish a record that the request has been made.
Make sure you have a qualifying disability under the ADA. You must be a person who:
1.has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities
2. has a record of such an impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment
The ADAAA clarified this definition in several areas. One change is that individuals who only meet the third prong of the definition (regarded as) are not entitled to accommodation, because they do not actually have a disability.
You also must be able to perform the essential functions of the job, with or without accommodation.
