How long does employer have to fix violation of ADA?

[giulveza]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

I have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and at work I have recently been moved to to a new space, and the way things are setup there is no way for me to sit and do my job without my back facing a doorway opening up to a fairly busy hallway. The best I can do is sit so that the door is at roughly my 7 o'clock and it is about 3 - 4 feet away from me.

It's been this way for several weeks and while I've been trying to get things fixed so far it doesn't seem to be a priority with my employer. Seems it's either tied up in bureaucracy or someone is hoping I forget about it.

It seems to me like it may be a violation of the ADA...how long is reasonable for something like this to be addressed?

Can they simply say "keep your door closed all the time" and have that be considered a fix?

All I'm asking for is a simple computer stand at my 9 o'clock so I can sit and work there which would have me sitting with the doorway at my 11 o'clock. This is roughly how my previous workspace was setup and it worked out quite well for 4.5 years here.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

 

[cbg]

There is no bright line where an employer has x days to provide an accomodation, being in violation of the law if he ends up taking x + 1.

How have you been requesting this computer stand? Have you provided doctor's verification of the necessity? Have you specifically identified yourself as disabled and made it clear that you are requesting an accomodation under the ADA?

Do you understand that you are not entitled to the accomodation you want, only one that works, and if keeping your door closed works your employer is not under any obligation under the ADA or any other law to do anything else?

 

[giulveza]

Hi cbg,

Thanks for the reply and for the info. I have talked about it with my immediate supervisor and manager and they are both aware of my concerns and support this problem being addressed, and my manager has said that I have his permission to keep my door closed until this gets fixed, suggesting he supports a solution other than keeping my door closed all the time. Things seem to be getting stuck at the next manager up.

I don't have a doctors verification specifically for this request nor have I mentioned anything about the ADA specifically as of yet--it just occurred to me this morning that my workplace could be a violation of something. Honestly I'm hoping that it doesn't get to the point of having to start talking about the ADA and any specific violations.

I'm open to pretty much any solution they may have to rectify things so I'm not demanding a specific solution per se, just looking for them to address it in some way.

Thanks again the info!

Dan

 

[cbg]

If you have not mentioned the ADA to them, they are not in violation of anything. At the present time, you are a rather demanding employee who is insisting on something that they are under no obligation to provide. It's up to you to convert yourself into a disabled employee who is requesting an accomodation under a Federal law.

Knowing that you have a given medical condition is not enough to put them on notice that you need (or are asking for) an accomodation or even that you are covered under the ADA. Frankly, we haven't even established that for certain. There is only one condition that is guaranteed protection under the ADA no matter what, and that condition is HIV/AIDS. Every other condition, without exception, needs to be looked at on a case by case basis. If your situation does not qualify under the ADA, they CERTAINLY are not in violation.

IF your condition qualifies under the ADA, then you are entitled to a reasonable accomodation. But THEY are likewise entitled to medical confirmation of your disability and what major life function is affected, and to have a say in what kind of accomodation you are given. The ADA does not give you the right to demand what you want, with their only option to bend over and give you what you want, with no further verification than your telling them that you have thus and such a condition.

It sounds to me as if they HAVE addressed it, even without a formal request; they've given you permission to shut the door. If you want more than that, you're going to have to formally invoke the ADA and give them what medical confirmation they require.