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EMPLOYMENT LAW BULLETIN Vol. 03, No. 1 Courtesy of Eskridge Law, Attorneys at Law In last month's issue we addressed the illegality of discriminating against employees and applicants based on their disabilities. (For employers with 15 or more employees, this applies to both physical and mental disabilities. For employers with fewer than 15 employees, it applies only to physical disabilities.) This issue addresses the employer's duties regarding providing reasonable accommodations for employees and applicants with disabilities, and provides some examples of reasonable accommodations. The Employer's Duties The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) requires employers to make reasonable accommodation for the known disabilities of employees and applicants to enable them to perform a position's essential functions, unless doing so would present an undue hardship to the employer's operations. California Government Code § 12940(m). An employer has an affirmative duty to accommodate a disabled employee or applicant. This duty arises as soon as the employer is aware of the employee's or applicant's disability, even if the employee or applicant has not requested any accommodation. California law requires the employer to engage in an interactive process with the employee or applicant to determine effective reasonable accommodations, if any, for the known physical or mental disability of the employee or applicant. An employer can refuse to offer reasonable accommodation only if the employer can demonstrate that accommodating the employee's disability would cause an undue hardship to the employer's operations. Undue hardship is defined as an action requiring significant difficulty or expense, when considered in light of several factors, including the nature and cost of the accommodation needed and the overall financial resources of the employer. Additionally, an employer who knows of the disability of an employee has an affirmative duty to make known to the employee other suitable job opportunities with the employer and to determine whether the employee is interested in, and qualified for, those positions, if the employer can do so without undue hardship or if the employer offers similar assistance or benefit to other disabled or non-disabled employees or has a policy of offering such assistance or benefit to any other employees. Examples of Reasonable Accommodations Selection of an appropriate accommodation is an individualized process depending on the limitations of the applicant's or employee's disability. FEHA provides a non-exhaustive list of possible accommodations:
Eskridge Law, Attorneys at Law, may be contacted by phone (310/792-7021), by fax (310/792-7022) or by e-mail (geskridge@ealaw.net). Please visit our web site at www.ealaw.net or www.employmentattorneys.net.
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