There are many ways for employers to make work more accessible for professionals. Some companies offer assistive technology, which can reduce physical demands on workers. Other employers may offer modified job responsibilities for a worker because of their medical limitations.
Employees sometimes request specific accommodations from their employers based on the recommendations of their physicians or their personal knowledge of how their condition usually manifests.
Can workers with disabling medical conditions in California ask for remote work as an accommodation?
Remote work is a common accommodation
Many jobs, ranging from white-collar management to customer service, involve tasks that workers can perform remotely. Employees do not need to be on site to respond to customer emails or answer phone calls. People can handle a broad range of intellectual job tasks, from scheduling retail workers for the week to reviewing plans for an upcoming construction project, from a home office.
Workers with a variety of different medical conditions might potentially benefit from remote work accommodations. Employers may need to comply with requests for remote work accommodations unless the company can prove that the request creates an undue hardship for the business.
When companies refuse accommodation requests unnecessarily, that behavior might constitute disability discrimination. Workers may have grounds to take legal action.
The courts can compel companies to accommodate workers after a disability discrimination lawsuit. They could also award workers compensation for the economic impact of the discrimination they experienced.
Learning about California and federal employment laws can help both workers and businesses navigate disputes about accommodations and other employment rights. Companies may need guidance to avoid unintentional discrimination, while workers may need support when holding their employer accountable for unfair and discriminatory practices.