Working Virtually: The New Frontier in ADA Accommodation?

Sometime this year, a U.S. District Court in Detroit will dive back into the weeds to decide whether a particular job at Ford Motor Corporation could be done adequately by an employee working four days a week from home. That’s the task it was given by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, which covers Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. This court overruled a trial court’s initial rejection of a discrimination suit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). What does it mean to provide “reasonable accommodations” to temporarily or permanently disabled employees so they can do their jobs, without causing “undue burdens” on employers? (This type of accommodation is required by the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.) The answer is not static, but evolving.  Click here to read the latest information and guidelines to consider when an employee asks for a telecommuting arrangement.