Accommodations: Low Cost, High Impact
Regardless of size or industry, all businesses have one thing in common—a desire to be successful in delivering their goods or services. And the key to this is ensuring all workers have the supports and tools they need to be productive. For some employees with disabilities, this may involve providing a reasonable accommodation.
An accommodation is considered any modification to the work environment, or the way a job is done, that enables someone with a disability to apply for or perform a job. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), covered employers must provide accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities, when requested, unless doing so would cause an undue hardship.
An ongoing research study updated annually by the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) indicates that the benefits of providing accommodations for workers with disabilities greatly outweigh the costs—if any are incurred at all. In fact, among employers who provided information about the cost of accommodations made:
- 49.4% said the accommodation they made cost nothing; and
- 43.3% said the accommodation incurred a one-time cost, with the median being $300.
In addition to revealing that the majority of employers report no cost or low cost for accommodating employees with disabilities, JAN’s survey sheds light on why accommodations are provided as well as their effectiveness. For instance, more than half (55%) of employers surveyed were seeking to retain a current employee. Also, 68.4% of employers said the accommodation was either very effective or extremely effective, and another 18.3% said it was somewhat effective. Moreover, after making accommodations, employers reported multiple direct and indirect benefits, chief among them retaining a valued employee.
Funded by ODEP, JAN is the leading source of free, expert and confidential guidance on workplace accommodations and other disability employment issues, and it can help businesses both big and small determine effective accommodations for the full range of conditions. As part of this, it offers guidance on supporting workers with Long COVID. Learn more at AskJAN.org.