Although I haven’t needed accommodations for my everyday work, I am worried that the conference will exacerbate some health challenges that I have. They may not be considered disabilities, but I could obtain a clinical note for them.
I’m building positive relationships with my managers, and I’ve read about ADA policies and the process of coming up with mutually beneficial solutions, such as receiving more breaks during the long days, to support my organization without becoming a martyr. How do you recommend discussing these concerns with my supervisor? How much of my health situation would I have to disclose? The conference is our biggest event, and I am nervous about implying that I would have trouble doing what’s expected of me.
Karla: You know this from your research, but for anyone who doesn’t, let me paraphrase the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: Employers subject to the Americans With Disabilities Act are required to provide reasonable accommodations that would allow an employee with a disability to perform the essential functions of their job, unless the accommodation would present an “undue hardship” to the employer. It sounds straightforward, but a lot depends on details such as whether the employer wants to quibble over whether your challenges qualify as a “disability,” or argue that granting you accommodations during the conference would leave its most important event understaffed.
The good news is, you’ve spent months building up goodwill with your managers and proving your value to the organization — so unless they’re complete monsters, they should be willing to help you help them. You can best preserve that goodwill by giving your managers enough advance notice to prepare, and by having a few solutions in mind that would be easy for them to sign off on. (The Job Accommodation Network, https://askjan.org/, offers lists of possible accommodations for various physical and mental conditions.)
Gather as much information as you can about the duties you would expect to be assigned and the challenges they present — being on your feet for extended periods, or having to rush from one area to another, or driving at night, or dealing with sensory overload in a crowded, noisy ballroom. Maybe a veteran of these events can help you map out the schedule and identify when all hands are needed on deck, what times of day tend to be slower, and what duties will let you deliver the most benefit without overtaxing you.
Then meet with your supervisor and explain that you’re excited about supporting the conference, you have some health concerns that you don’t want interfering with your performance, and you would like to request some simple accommodations that will allow you to focus your contributions where and when they will bring maximum benefit. You’re not trying to avoid hard work; you’re trying to ensure that you’re able to give 100 percent when the hard work is needed.
If all goes well and everyone agrees on workable accommodations, the next step is to document that agreement. Send your manager a follow-up email describing what you’ve agreed on, and copy HR and any other parties who need to know. A change in management or last-minute logistical emergency during the conference could mean your agreement ends up forgotten or overridden unless you have it on the record.
And even if you’re not asked to provide a doctor’s note, it would be a smart piece of insurance to add that to the record. Have the doctor outline your boundaries and needs, such as hourly breaks, weight limits on loads you’re asked to lift, ready access to seating and bathrooms. Your doctor should be able to explain those requirements without revealing private details about your underlying condition.
Keep in mind that your employer doesn’t have to grant the exact accommodations you request if they’re too burdensome to the organization or to your colleagues. But if you sense that your manager is balking at granting even minor accommodations, or you get a whiff of retaliation for having requested them, you may have to escalate your concerns to a trusted manager or HR.
And while you’re building good relationships, don’t forget about your fellow support staffers. If they know they can always rely on you to cover for them, they’ll more likely be willing to reciprocate when you need to tag out.
Reader query: As new grads and interns enter workplaces for the summer, what are some of the “unwritten etiquette” rules you think they should know? As a new hire, what do you wish you had done that would have helped you make a better impression? Let me know at karla.miller@washpost.com.
