Melissa Roth of Gowling to speak at upcoming HRD Employment Law Summit
When it comes to disability accommodations, employers need to tread decisively but very carefully.
So says Melissa Roth, Partner at Gowling WLG and speaker at HRD’s upcoming Employment Law Summit. And one of the main challenges here is when employees request accommodations based on their own assessments or preferences, without providing the necessary medical documentation.
"One of the main challenges is not receiving the medical information from the employee," she tells HRD. “Telling your employer that you have a disability and that you want them to do X, Y, and Z is not the process. The process is to receive medical information that identifies the restrictions and limitations that are related to the disability.”
Moreover, there is a common misunderstanding among employees and healthcare professionals about the process that needs to be followed. As Roth points out: “Often, employees or healthcare professionals state what the accommodation ought to be, instead of providing restrictions and limitations.”
Understanding mental disabilities
Another significant issue arises when managers implement informal accommodations without the necessary medical support, or fail to adhere to the accommodation plan. Roth tells HRD that there’s a particular difficulty in understanding and accommodating mental disabilities compared to physical ones.
“With accommodation of mental health disabilities, sometimes doctors have a harder time differentiating between what the request for accommodation is and what the actual restrictions and limitations are. The role of the healthcare professional is not to tell the employer what the accommodation should be, but to tell the employer the restrictions and limitations, with enough clarity for the employer to be able to assess what the appropriate accommodation may be.”
One of the reasons accommodation requests seem to be on the rise is the slow return to the office. Throughout the pandemic, employees became accustomed to working from the comfort of their own homes – with some even moving to another province entirely. Now, with employers recalling their people to their offices, workers are seemingly submitting accommodation requests as a way of offsetting their demands.
When discussing the development of return-to-work plans, Roth pushes the necessity of an individualized approach.
“These are not one-size-fits-all kind of approaches,” she explains. Key considerations include remote work options, flexible hours, and job sharing to accommodate diverse needs. Regular check-ins and adjustments to the plan are crucial, as is the provision of mental health resources and the encouragement of open conversations about disability accommodation challenges.
Remote vs in-office accommodation requests
Employers should ensure a gradual return to work, especially for employees who have been off for an extended period. “They may need to ease back into it and understand that this return-to-work plan may be a transition,” adds Roth.
Addressing the unique challenges and strategies associated with remote and on-site employees, Roth acknowledged the blurred boundaries between work and personal life in remote work settings.
“Remote work brings into question the work-life balance, and blurs the lines and the boundaries between work and personal life and can lead to burnout,” she adds. Setting clear expectations about work hours, encouraging regular breaks, and providing mental health support are strategies to combat these challenges.
Lastly, communication barriers are another issue for remote workers. Here, Roth suggests using collaboration tools like Slack or Microsoft Teams for real-time communication. “Scheduling regular team meetings and one-on-one check-ins and encouraging open and transparent communication channels are vital,” she tells HRD.