Remote work is now the top requested workplace accommodation

It comes as more major companies shift away from the hybrid arrangements they were in last year, and are requiring staff to work from offices five days a week. JP Morgan is one example, along with others in finance like Goldman Sachs, and some in tech like Amazon. Meanwhile, agency holding group WPP caused waves internally when it announced staff would have to be back in the office four days a week from April.

Employers are required to offer reasonable accommodations to staff with disabilities who request them under the Americans with Disabilities Act, though many employees are taking their requests directly to their managers, who may not be equipped to deal with compliance issues like HR teams. Almost half of employees approach managers before HR with such requests, according to AbsenceSoft’s report. 

Remote work is now the top requested workplace accommodation which are only expected to grow, with HR leading the entire process rather than individual managers, said Seth Turner, chief strategy officer at AbsenceSoft.

“We’ve done a lot of talking about the fact you need to educate your managers on recognizing these requests and getting them to HR, because you don’t really want your managers going through the interactive process and making the accommodation, you want that done in HR, where they are trained to do that,” Turner said.

The accommodation process is typically an interactive back-and-forth or negotiation. First an employee presents their condition with medical documentation along with the workplace issue they are facing and accommodations they’re requesting. Then HR can evaluate whether that request is reasonable and feasible for the organization, based on the role and responsibilities. 

“The important part with accommodations is there’s not really a one-size-fits-all. Every job is different, every person’s medical diagnosis is different, and every request is different,” Turner said.

Staff recovering from an injury or surgery, or those dealing with a chronic health condition, might request scheduling flexibility in order to attend appointments or physical therapy, or may request more frequent breaks.

But employers can also reject requests for accommodations if they pose an undue burden on the company. For instance, allowing a line cook, or kindergarten teacher, to work from home wouldn’t be feasible and would cause an undue burden for the organization.

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