On Thursday, October 26, 2023, Conn Maciel Carey’s Labor and Employment attorneys presented a webinar regarding ADA Reasonable Accommodations & Managing the Interactive Process.
Presented by: Aaron R. Gelb and Megan S. Shaked of CMC’s Labor & Employment Practice Group
And Special Guest Diane Smason (Acting Director for the EEOC Chicago District Office)
Understanding the employer’s obligations when responding to an employee’s request for a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, including when and how best to engage in the “interactive process” can be particularly challenging as there is rarely an obvious or easy answer. The law does not require an employee to make any reference to the ADA or use specific words, such as ‘disability’ or ‘reasonable accommodation,’ when requesting an accommodation, so employers must recognize the variety of ways in which a request for an accommodation may be articulated.
Unfortunately, far too many employers focus on the outcome—believing the need to find the perfect accommodation—when, in fact, the key to success is found in effectively engaging in the interactive process. When presented with a challenging request for accommodation, however, employers may give up too quickly or fail to appropriately consider and explore alternative options. Others mistakenly assume they have to provide the accommodation sought by their employee or something substantially similar to what was requested. Those employers that figure out the process tend not only to obtain better outcomes but can effectively protect themselves from costly judgments down the road.
Participants in this webinar learned:
- Who requires a reasonable accommodation?
- An employer’s obligation to engage in the interactive process
- Whether you can deny requests or rescind a reasonable accommodation
- Steps to ensure your workforce accommodation efforts promote an inclusive culture
- Tips for creating a comprehensive reasonable accommodation process
- How to stay compliant with reasonable accommodation rules
We are pleased to share these links to a copy of the slides and a recording of the webinar.
This program has been approved for 1 HR (General) recertification credit hours toward aPHR™, aPHRi™, PHR®, PHRca®, SPHR®, GPHR®, PHRi™ and SPHRi™recertification through HRCI®.
This program is also valid for 1 PDCs for the SHRM-CPSM or SHRM-SCPSM.
If you would like to be registered for the entire 2023 Labor and Employment Webinar series, click here to send us an email request, and we will register you.
This was the 9th webinar event in Conn Maciel Carey LLP’s 2023 Labor and Employment Webinar Series. Click here to view our full schedule and detailed program descriptions for all of the webinars scheduled for the 2023 Labor and Employment Webinar Series. If you missed any of our past webinars in our annual Labor and Employment Webinar Series, view our Labor and Employment Webinar Library to access all of our webinar recordings. Also, click here to subscribe to our YouTube channel and get an email notification when new recordings become available.
