FAQs

What is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The ADA is a federal civil rights law that was passed in 1990 and went into effect in 1992. Its purpose is to protect people with disabilities from discrimination in employment and requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities unless it creates an undue hardship (Title I). Title II of the ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in services, programs and activities provided by state and local governments.

What is Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 504)?

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act is the first federal civil rights law protecting the rights of people with disabilities. It prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in programs that receive federal financial assistance.

What is the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA)?

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) is a law that requires covered employers to provide “reasonable accommodations” to a worker’s known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless the accommodation will cause the employer an “undue hardship.”

What does University Policy require?

USU policy, in compliance with state and federal law, prohibits discrimination based on disability, pregnancy and other factors.

USU is committed to ensuring full right of access for persons with disabilities to all terms and conditions of employment, services, programs, and activities. The University will, when possible, make reasonable accommodations to enable an otherwise qualified individual with a disability, to successfully perform the essential functions of the job.

What is a disability?

The ADA defines an individual with a disability as a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a person who has a history or record of such an impairment, or a person who is perceived by others as having such an impairment.

What is a reasonable accommodation?

A reasonable accommodation is any modification or adjustment to a job or work environment that will enable a qualified applicant or employee with a disability to participate in the application process or to perform essential job functions. Reasonable accommodations may include but are not limited to: making facilities accessible, adjusting work schedules; restructuring jobs; reallocating or redistributing non-essential, marginal job functions; providing assistive devices or equipment; and modifying work sites. A leave of absence may also be considered where necessary, in conjunction with the FMLA and/or the Short-Term-Disability policy.

What is the responsibility of the University to an employee?

USU is required to provide reasonable accommodations, when possible, for employees with disabilities unless it creates an undue hardship. The university expects an employee to be able to perform the essential functions of their job with or without reasonable accommodations.

The university will engage in an interactive process to collaboratively explore accommodation solutions with individuals with disabilities who request accommodations.

How do I know when to request an accommodation?

Employees can request an accommodation at any time during the application process or while employed. You can request an accommodation even if you did not ask for one when applying for a job or after receiving a job offer. In general, you should request an accommodation when you know that due to a disability, there is a workplace barrier that is preventing you from competing for a job, performing a job, or gaining equal access to a benefit of employment like a classroom or employee parking. As a practical matter, it is better to request an accommodation before your job performance suffers or conduct problems occur because accommodations are not retroactive, and employers do not have to rescind discipline that occurred before they knew about an employee’s disability.

What documentation is required when requesting an accommodation?

The university requests two forms of documentation from an employee who is requesting an accommodation

1. A completed request form from the employee.
2. A Medical Inquiry form completed by the employee’s treating provider.

If the Medical Inquiry form does not adequately respond to all questions on the form, it may be necessary to request additional information, which could delay the approval process.

The purpose of the forms is to understand the following:

• The current impact of your medical condition and functional limitations you experience in your everyday life due to your disability.
• The limitations caused by the condition and how those limitations impact the performance of the essential functions of the job. This includes:
  
  • Expected progression or stability
  • Functional living skills (i.e., orientation and mobility and activities of daily living (ADLs))
  • Notation of any medical equipment that is required
  • Notation of medications, if any, and potential impact on performing essential functions and/or side effects
  • Implications of existing co-morbid conditions
• Additional observations and/or recommendations for appropriate reasonable accommodations
• How any recommended reasonable accommodations would support the limitations

What is the role of the ADA Coordinator?

The role of the ADA Coordinator is to receive candidate and employee accommodation requests; engage in, and facilitate the interactive process with a candidate or employee and their supervisor(s) to help determine any effective reasonable accommodation. Work with supervisors and employees to implement reasonable accommodations. Serve as the point of contact for ADA-related questions for employees and candidates. Coordinate and implement workplace ADA compliance, leadership training, and appeals. Coordinate with individuals with a disability and other stakeholders to offer available resources.

What is the interactive accommodation process?

Step 1: Recognizing an Accommodation Request

The interactive process starts with an accommodation request (whether a specific accommodation is requested or not) from an employee with a disability. An employee with a disability may request an accommodation by completing the Accommodation Request Form.

Step 2: Gathering Information

Once an accommodation request has been received by the ADA Coordinator, documentation will be gathered to process the request. Necessary information may include documentation of the functional limitations of the disability and the need for reasonable accommodation (including the nature, severity, duration, and impact on the essential functions of the job). In some cases, the employee’s disability and need for accommodation are obvious and no additional information is needed.

Step 3: Exploring Accommodation Options

After the ADA Coordinator has identified the employee’s limitation(s) and how the limitations are impeding the employee from completing the essential functions of the job, the ADA Coordinator will explore accommodation options with the employee and other resources as appropriate. This step will likely also include a conversation with the employee and their supervisor. For accommodation ideas, check with the Job Accommodation Network which provides a searchable database of disabilities and common accommodations.

Step 4: Finalizing the Accommodation

Once a reasonable accommodation is determined, a resolution to the request is completed (USU will strive to implement all reasonable accommodation requests, but there may be occasions where there is no reasonable accommodation). The resolution will review what was requested, what was found to be a reasonable accommodation, and expectations around the selected accommodation.

Step 5: Implementing the Reasonable Accommodation

The ADA Coordinator will work with the employee’s department and others necessary to implement all reasonable accommodations. An employee may need a period of time to learn how to utilize the accommodation or how to put into practice an accommodation.

Step 6: Monitoring the Reasonable Accommodation

The accommodation process is ongoing and interactive. The most important way to monitor accommodations is to encourage ongoing communication. Employees who are receiving accommodations need to understand that they should let their supervisor or The ADA Coordinator know if there are changes or problems with the accommodation or if it is no longer effective.