Driving Accommodations for Employees with Disabilities
The ADA provides reasonable accommodations employers may make for employees with disabilities. Here’s everything you need to know about reasonable accommodation for driving to work.
The EEOC protects the rights of employees with disabilities and enforces reasonable accommodations in the workplace. Although the ADA does not require employers to provide employees with transportation to work, there are other reasonable accommodations employers may make for employees with disabilities who have trouble commuting to work.
Driving Accommodations For Work
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, EEOC, upholds federal laws mandating reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities in the workplace. Transportation may be an issue for some employees with disabilities when commuting to work. An employee with a disability may not be able to drive or may have difficulty accessing public transportation.
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Under the Americans with Disabilities Act or ADA, employers do not need to provide transportation to and from work for employees with disabilities, unless they offer transportation services for all employees. The Federal Transit Administration, FTA, may assist employees in finding accessible transportation to work.
Although an employer may not need to provide transportation accommodations to work, the EEOC provides other reasonable accommodations employers can make for employees who struggle commuting to work. An employer may adjust an employee’s schedule to allow them to use public transportation. Additionally, employers may need to reserve an accessible parking space for an employee with a disability or provide them with an accessible entrance.
Telework as a Reasonable Accommodation
In some cases, an employee with a disability may not have access to public transportation. If an employer offers reasonable arrival accommodations and an employee with a disability is still unable to commute to work, their employer may offer telework, or work from home, as a reasonable accommodation.
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The ADA has reasonable accommodation requirements for modifying workplace policies which include changing the location of where work is performed. If an employer does not have a telework program, adapting to allow an employee with a disability to work from home may still be a reasonable accommodation. Employers who deny a disabled employee’s request to work from home may need to offer other reasonable accommodations.
FAQs About Reasonable Accommodation For Driving to Work
Does an employer need to provide reasonable accommodations for employees who cannot transport themselves to work?
Under the ADA, an employer does not need to provide an employee with disability transportation to work, unless they provide all employees transportation to work. However, there are other reasonable accommodations employers may need to provide for employees who have trouble commuting to work.
An employer may need to modify the time of work depending on when an employee with a disability can secure transportation. An employer may also need to modify the workplace to ensure its accessibility for employees with disabilities. Workplace modification may mean providing an accessible entrance, ramp, or parking.
Additionally, an employer may need to modify the location where an employee with a disability may work. Location modification as a reasonable accommodation may allow for an employee to work in a telework program or work from home.
Does the ADA require an employer to have telework programs?
The ADA does not require employers to have telework programs for employees with disabilities. However, an employer who does offer telework must allow employees with disabilities to participate in their program. Additionally, an employer may need to provide a telework program or work from home if there is no other reasonable accommodation possible for an employee with a disability.
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