Other News

Reasonable Accommodation

The University of Washington is committed to compliance with federal and state laws and regulations prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability. Consistent with current enforcement guidelines of the U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and in light of emerging case law in the area of disability discrimination, the UW has modified its accommodation policy and procedures. The major change is that an employee whose disability-related restrictions cause him or her to be permanently unable to perform his or her current job with or without reasonable accommodation and who is able to work at least half time may under the conditions described below be eligible for placement in a vacant position anywhere within the University without competition. The policy applies whether or not the disabling condition is caused by work-related injuries.

These changes have been endorsed by the University Human Resources Committee.

The complete Policy and Procedure on Reasonable Accommodation of Employees with Disabilities has been published this month in the UW Operations Manual at D 46.5. Following is a summary of these procedures.

Offices to Contact for Help

A number of offices are responsible for the accommodation process. WPRB-Classified, Contract Classified and Professional staff, temporary employees and student helpers can find assistance at Harborview Medical Center Personnel for HMC employees, UW Medical Center Personnel for UWMC employees, Health Sciences Personnel for health sciences employees, and Staff Personnel for all other employees, including those at Bothell and Tacoma. Accommodations for faculty, librarians, graduate student appointees and other academic employees are under the jurisdiction of the Disability Services Office. The Risk Management Office is responsible for workers’ compensation claims for all groups of employees.

Requests for accommodation in current job

The first goal of the University is to make reasonable accommodations for its employees with disabilities that will allow them to perform the essential functions of their current job. An employee may begin the process by making a specific request to his or her supervisor or by contacting the appropriate office listed above.

Upon receipt of a request for an accommodation or notification of a serious illness or medical condition which interferes with work, a supervisor should contact the appropriate area personnel office or the Disability Services Office for assistance and inform the employee about the accommodation process. Though an employee may choose to talk about his or her disability, by law supervisors have no right to know about specific disabling conditions. Thus supervisors should be careful not to solicit information regarding an employee’s disabling condition.

The area personnel office, Disability Services Office or Office of Risk Management (when workers’ compensation claims are involved) will then confer with the employee and the department to decide the appropriate actions to take. This may include determining whether the employee has a documented disability and can perform the essential functions of the position with or without accommodation. The employee may be asked to submit documentation of the disabling condition as a condition of receiving accommodations. In situations with workers’ compensation claims, the Office of Risk Management may request medical information directly from Washington State Department of Labor and Industries or from health care providers involved with the claim. Documentation will be reviewed by the staff of these offices for its adequacy and relationship between the condition and the employee’s ability to work.

To determine whether the employee can perform the essential functions of the position with or without accommodation, supervisors may be asked to assist in preparing a job analysis of the specific requirements of the job. If the employee can do the essential functions of his or her position with accommodation, the University is obligated to provide a reasonable accommodation. This accommodation does not need to be identical to that requested by the employee as long as it is effective.

The University is not required to provide an accommodation if it would create an undue hardship to do so. An example of an undue hardship is when the accommodation requires a fundamental alteration to the job (e.g., change in the essential functions) or program. Departments are not expected to pay for approved accommodations; costs are paid by University funds and/or by the State Department of Labor and Industries (in cases of workers’ compensation claims). The Office of Risk Management coordinates purchase of and payment for accommodations related to workers’ compensation claims, and the Disability Services Office arranges all others. The University is committed to making reasonable accommodations for qualified employees with disabilities in their current positions whenever possible.

When current jobs cannot be performed

An employee who, because of a temporary or permanent disability, cannot perform the essential functions of his or her position with or without accommodation may be eligible for a disability leave of absence which may include leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). See the University Operations Manual D 45.5 or Personnel Services Web site http://www.washington.edu/admin/emprel/fmla for more information on the FMLA. Supervisors should work with their area personnel office if they have questions about leaves for Professional, WPRB-Classified and Contract Classified employees. Department chairs should contact Academic Personnel whenever a faculty member will be absent for more than one week due to illness or disability. Leaves for librarians should be discussed with the Deputy Director of Libraries.

In some cases workers’ compensation procedures mandate that supervisors look for alternative assignments within departments or colleges as means of accommodating temporary conditions or as an interim step while accommodations are made for permanent conditions. The Office of Risk Management is responsible for coordinating transitional and modified duty assignments for employees with active workers’ compensation claims. Supervisors are encouraged to look for such alternative assignments in other cases as well, and should discuss such possibilities with their area personnel office, Risk Management, and/or Disability Services Office.

University policy has recently been changed such that an employee who is permanently unable to perform his or her current job but who is able to work at least half time in another capacity will be eligible for placement without competition in vacant positions anywhere in the University for which he or she qualifies. These placements are in positions at an equivalent or lower salary. In order to make these placements, the employee will be asked for medical documentation detailing the work that the employee can perform and for documentation of work experience, training and education.

Deans, Vice Presidents and their designees play an important role in this process. After such necessary information is provided, Personnel Services and/or Disability Services offices will assist deans, vice presidents and other appointing authorities in identifying an equivalent vacant position within their organization. If no such vacancy is identified, a search will be conducted to identify all vacant positions within the University which are at a salary level equal to or lower than the current position and for which the employee is qualified, with or without accommodation. This search will take place over ten working days. If such a vacant position is located, staff from Disability Services and/or Personnel Services will review the position with the department to assure that the essential functions of the position can be performed by the employee. In the cases where an appropriate position is identified, the employee will be offered placement in the vacant position without competition. If the employee accepts the offer, he/she will be placed in the position.

An employee who declines placement in an offered position or for whom an appropriate position is not identified during the search period will be separated from the University. A separated employee will be eligible for assistance from the Staff Employment Office in applying for other University of Washington openings on a competitive basis, for up to three years following separation.

Placements of persons with disabilities without competition is a new process at the University. The placements will only be successful with the support of supervisors and their departments. Your cooperation is essential to reaching full compliance with the laws against discrimination.
Office of the Provost

Postal Changes

Effective Jan. 1, 1999 please be sure your window envelopes comply with United States Postal Service (USPS) regulations for automation-compatible mail. No part of the window may intrude into the Barcode Clear Zone. This zone is the lower right corner of the envelope and extends 4 inches from the lower right corner edge and 5/8 inch from the bottom of the envelope.

The generic UW envelopes stocked by University Stores comply with these new requirements:

Generic 98195 Window Envelope U Stores # 1078-310

Generic 98105 Windows Envelope U Stores # 1078-309

Departments who use custom window envelopes preprinted with department name and address should order new envelopes before January. Custom envelopes may be ordered through Publication Services, 543-5680.

Using these envelopes will allow your mail to qualify for postage discounts (3 cents per piece) on your outgoing domestic first-class USPS mail.

For more information about automation-compatible mail, please consult Mailing Services at 543-8757 or your Publications Services coordinator at 543-5680. You may also e-mail us at mailserv@u.washington.edu or visit the U.S. Postal Service Web site at http://www.usps.gov.
Mailing Services