New ADA guidance reveals 8 things employers need to know

by Christian Schappel

The ADA’s interactive process has been one of the more vexing aspects of employment law recently. 

Not only has the EEOC ramped up its oversight of this complex area, but the regulations surrounding the interactive process don’t paint a black-and-white picture of what exactly employers need to do.

Interactive process: a definition

As you know, the need to initiate the interactive process with an employee occurs when an employer first finds out that the employee is suffering from a disability that may affect the person’s ability to perform his or her job.

In a nutshell, the process requires the employer to “interact” with the employee in an attempt to seek out a reasonable accommodation for the disability that would allow the employee to continue to perform the essential functions of his or her job.

The problem is, the EEOC has said the process will likely be different for every employee. As a result, employers must approach it on an individual basis — no templates, scripts or specific step-by-step process instructions.

As a result, employers are struggling to know what they can and can’t do when an employee requests an accommodation (or when the potential need for one becomes known).

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