New federal resource provides accommodation ideas for workers with disabilities, employers

The U.S. Department of Labor launched a new resource to provide workplace accommodation ideas for workers with disabilities and their employers. The database offers hundreds of examples of reasonable accommodations, which employers are required to provide, unless it would cause "undue hardship", under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The Situations and Solutions Finder is a new feature accessible through DOL's Job Accommodation Network, or JAN. The new resource offers more than 700 accommodation examples across different industries.

Users can search the site by disability, limitation or occupation, and it will generate applicable accommodation examples.
 

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Tracie DeFreitas is the director of training and outreach for JAN. She said workplace accommodations are essential for elevating the inclusion and productivity of all employees.

"Providing accommodations is really important because the changes in the work environment and the way things are customarily done that enable people with disabilities to enjoy equal employment opportunities are essential for fostering inclusion and elevating the productivity of all employees," DeFreitas said.

DeFreitas said the Situations and Solutions Finder can provide its users a perspective on accommodations that they may not have had before.

Timoria is our labor and employment reporter. Contact her at tcunningham@wfyi.org.