Calendar

Download Registration Form

Instructor

Meghan Droste

Course Description

 1

FELTG kicks off its five-part webinar series Reasonable Accommodation in the Federal Workplace with an overview of the the current state of disability law and how the ADA, ADAAA, and Rehabilitation Act apply to federal employees with disabilities. Before you can appropriately manage the complex reasonable accommodation requests you’re likely to receive in the next few months, you need a thorough understanding of the basics. Attendees will learn about:

• Making disability determinations
• What “qualified individual” actually means
• Reasonable accommodation requests
• The interactive process
• Denials of reasonable accommodation
• Reassignment and Medical Inability to Perform removals

Whether you’re an attorney, disability program manager, EEO or HR Specialist or a supervisor, you’ll want to be sure to attend this session.

This program meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240 per site, per session (payment made by July 2).
• Standard Tuition: $270 per site, per session (payment made July 3 or later).

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah Hopkins, Katherine Atkinson, Meghan Droste

Course Description

One of the most important and complex areas in federal employment law is the obligation to provide reasonable accommodation, whether it’s to qualified individuals with disabilities or for individuals with sincerely held religious beliefs. And the pandemic has made these laws even trickier and more important than usual.

The Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act is more than ten years old; the ADA is more than 30, and the Rehabilitation Act is nearing 50. However, too many agencies continue to follow outdated procedures that are not compliant with the law. Because there are so many complexities in the reasonable accommodation process, the best way to avoid pitfalls and to be sure you provide accommodations for people who are entitled is to follow the appropriate steps, in the proper order.

Yet, times change, and we learn new information about medical conditions, while new medications and treatments raise different issues. Technological advances create opportunities that previously didn’t exist. And once-in-a-lifetime pandemics create new, multifaceted challenges.

Updated for 2021, FELTG’s annual five-part series on reasonable accommodation provides an opportunity to re-familiarize yourself with the critical foundation of disability law, and apply it to the ever-evolving federal workplace. The series will tackle everything from the basics of the law to challenges, such as providing accommodations to teleworkers and accommodating invisible disabilities. You’ll learn from the mistakes others have made, as well as how the law differs for religious accommodation. Attend one session, or attend them all.

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Click on any event for a full description.

 5 (1 per webinar)

Session 1: Reasonable Accommodation Overview and Analysis (July 15)

Session 2: Accommodating Invisible Disabilities (July 22)

Session 3: Telework as Reasonable Accommodation (July 29)

Session 4: Reasonable Accommodation: The Mistakes Agencies Make (August 5)

Session 5: Religious Accommodations: How They’re Different from Disability Accommodations (August 12)

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240.00 per site, per session (payment made by July 2).
• Standard Tuition: $270.00 per site, per session (payment made July 3 or later).
• Register for all five webinars by July 2 and pay only $1,150.00!

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructor

Katherine Atkinson

Course Description

 1

Numerous disabilities, such as chronic pain and diabetes, are not always visible or obvious in the workplace. As the federal workforce ages, the number of employees with hidden disabilities continues to grow. And as a result of the pandemic, you’re likely to see more requests for respiratory illnesses and COVID-related conditions, such as chronic fatigue.

Providing reasonable accommodation for so-called invisible disabilities is going to be a major challenge for HR professionals, supervisors, and the people who advise them.

In the second webinar of our Reasonable Accommodation in the Federal Workplace series attorney Katherine Atkinson will explain to how properly navigate Rehabilitation Act regulations and EEOC guidance while taking a common sense approach to reasonably accommodating hidden disabilities. Ms. Atkinson will provide examples of accommodations that have proven successful for hidden disabilities.

Whether you’re an attorney, disability program manager, EEO or HR Specialist or a supervisor, you’ll want to be sure to attend this session.

This program meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240 per site, per session (payment made by July 2).
• Standard Tuition: $270 per site, per session (payment made July 3 or later).

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah Hopkins, Katherine Atkinson, Meghan Droste

Course Description

One of the most important and complex areas in federal employment law is the obligation to provide reasonable accommodation, whether it’s to qualified individuals with disabilities or for individuals with sincerely held religious beliefs. And the pandemic has made these laws even trickier and more important than usual.

The Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act is more than ten years old; the ADA is more than 30, and the Rehabilitation Act is nearing 50. However, too many agencies continue to follow outdated procedures that are not compliant with the law. Because there are so many complexities in the reasonable accommodation process, the best way to avoid pitfalls and to be sure you provide accommodations for people who are entitled is to follow the appropriate steps, in the proper order.

Yet, times change, and we learn new information about medical conditions, while new medications and treatments raise different issues. Technological advances create opportunities that previously didn’t exist. And once-in-a-lifetime pandemics create new, multifaceted challenges.

Updated for 2021, FELTG’s annual five-part series on reasonable accommodation provides an opportunity to re-familiarize yourself with the critical foundation of disability law, and apply it to the ever-evolving federal workplace. The series will tackle everything from the basics of the law to challenges, such as providing accommodations to teleworkers and accommodating invisible disabilities. You’ll learn from the mistakes others have made, as well as how the law differs for religious accommodation. Attend one session, or attend them all.

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Click on any event for a full description.

 5 (1 per webinar)

Session 1: Reasonable Accommodation Overview and Analysis (July 15)

Session 2: Accommodating Invisible Disabilities (July 22)

Session 3: Telework as Reasonable Accommodation (July 29)

Session 4: Reasonable Accommodation: The Mistakes Agencies Make (August 5)

Session 5: Religious Accommodations: How They’re Different from Disability Accommodations (August 12)

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240.00 per site, per session (payment made by July 2).
• Standard Tuition: $270.00 per site, per session (payment made July 3 or later).
• Register for all five webinars by July 2 and pay only $1,150.00!

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructor

Deborah Hopkins

Course Description

 1

Telework is one of the the most commonly requested accommodations for individuals who have physical and mental disabilities. And after a year of pandemic-induced work challenges, it’s more clear than ever: Telework can be a very effective accommodation, too. In light of that, you can expect even more reasonable accommodation requests for telework than ever before. Are you ready to do the appropriate interactive discussion and analysis?

Join FELTG President and Attorney at Law Deborah Hopkins for a discussion on this timely topic during the third event in our Reasonable Accommodation in the Federal Workplace webinar series. Ms Hopkins will detail the required three-step process for agencies to be compliant when dealing with reasonable accommodation requests.

From there, she’ll discuss:

• What to do if telework would be an effective accommodation – but something else would work too
• Who gets to choose the accommodation
• What the EEOC says about accommodating an employee’s commute
• When an agency can legally deny telework as an accommodation

Often times the best way to learn is by looking at real-life case studies, so the session will include a discussion on recent federal cases – won and lost – involving telework requests as reasonable accommodation. Because of the cost incurred when handling a reasonable accommodation complaint, your agency EEO staff, reasonable accommodation coordinators, disability coordinators, HR staff and supervisors truly cannot afford to miss this event.

This program meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240.00 per site, per session (payment made by July 2).
• Standard Tuition: $270.00 per site, per session (payment made July 3 or later).

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah Hopkins, Katherine Atkinson, Meghan Droste

Course Description

One of the most important and complex areas in federal employment law is the obligation to provide reasonable accommodation, whether it’s to qualified individuals with disabilities or for individuals with sincerely held religious beliefs. And the pandemic has made these laws even trickier and more important than usual.

The Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act is more than ten years old; the ADA is more than 30, and the Rehabilitation Act is nearing 50. However, too many agencies continue to follow outdated procedures that are not compliant with the law. Because there are so many complexities in the reasonable accommodation process, the best way to avoid pitfalls and to be sure you provide accommodations for people who are entitled is to follow the appropriate steps, in the proper order.

Yet, times change, and we learn new information about medical conditions, while new medications and treatments raise different issues. Technological advances create opportunities that previously didn’t exist. And once-in-a-lifetime pandemics create new, multifaceted challenges.

Updated for 2021, FELTG’s annual five-part series on reasonable accommodation provides an opportunity to re-familiarize yourself with the critical foundation of disability law, and apply it to the ever-evolving federal workplace. The series will tackle everything from the basics of the law to challenges, such as providing accommodations to teleworkers and accommodating invisible disabilities. You’ll learn from the mistakes others have made, as well as how the law differs for religious accommodation. Attend one session, or attend them all.

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Click on any event for a full description.

 5 (1 per webinar)

Session 1: Reasonable Accommodation Overview and Analysis (July 15)

Session 2: Accommodating Invisible Disabilities (July 22)

Session 3: Telework as Reasonable Accommodation (July 29)

Session 4: Reasonable Accommodation: The Mistakes Agencies Make (August 5)

Session 5: Religious Accommodations: How They’re Different from Disability Accommodations (August 12)

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240.00 per site, per session (payment made by July 2).
• Standard Tuition: $270.00 per site, per session (payment made July 3 or later).
• Register for all five webinars by July 2 and pay only $1,150.00!

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructor

Robert Woods

Course Description

 1

Are you likely to outright deny a reasonable accommodation request for leave or a flexible work schedule? Do you think undue hardship is a viable reason to deny most reasonable accommodations? Do you think it’s the supervisor’s responsibility to determine if the individual is really disabled? Have you reached out to an employee’s doctor to find out more about his disability? If so, we have one word for you: Uh-oh.

Oftentimes the best way to learn is by making mistakes. But not when it comes to reasonable accommodation law. Instead, learn from the costly and embarrassing blunders that other agencies have already made. Attorney Robert Woods will review recent EEO cases to share these mistakes so you know how to avoid them.

During this session, the fourth in our Reasonable Accommodation in the Federal Workplace webinar series, attendees will learn:

• What steps to take when an employee informs you of his or her disability
• How to determine if telework would be an effective accommodation
• When leave would be considered an accommodation
• Why undue hardship is rarely a successful defense for denying an accommodation request

Learn how to handle reasonable accommodation requests with confidence.

This program meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240 per site, per session (payment made by July 20).
• Standard Tuition: $270 per site, per session (payment made July 21 or later).

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah Hopkins, Katherine Atkinson, Meghan Droste

Course Description

One of the most important and complex areas in federal employment law is the obligation to provide reasonable accommodation, whether it’s to qualified individuals with disabilities or for individuals with sincerely held religious beliefs. And the pandemic has made these laws even trickier and more important than usual.

The Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act is more than ten years old; the ADA is more than 30, and the Rehabilitation Act is nearing 50. However, too many agencies continue to follow outdated procedures that are not compliant with the law. Because there are so many complexities in the reasonable accommodation process, the best way to avoid pitfalls and to be sure you provide accommodations for people who are entitled is to follow the appropriate steps, in the proper order.

Yet, times change, and we learn new information about medical conditions, while new medications and treatments raise different issues. Technological advances create opportunities that previously didn’t exist. And once-in-a-lifetime pandemics create new, multifaceted challenges.

Updated for 2021, FELTG’s annual five-part series on reasonable accommodation provides an opportunity to re-familiarize yourself with the critical foundation of disability law, and apply it to the ever-evolving federal workplace. The series will tackle everything from the basics of the law to challenges, such as providing accommodations to teleworkers and accommodating invisible disabilities. You’ll learn from the mistakes others have made, as well as how the law differs for religious accommodation. Attend one session, or attend them all.

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Click on any event for a full description.

 5 (1 per webinar)

Session 1: Reasonable Accommodation Overview and Analysis (July 15)

Session 2: Accommodating Invisible Disabilities (July 22)

Session 3: Telework as Reasonable Accommodation (July 29)

Session 4: Reasonable Accommodation: The Mistakes Agencies Make (August 5)

Session 5: Religious Accommodations: How They’re Different from Disability Accommodations (August 12)

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240.00 per site, per session (payment made by July 2).
• Standard Tuition: $270.00 per site, per session (payment made July 3 or later).
• Register for all five webinars by July 2 and pay only $1,150.00!

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructor

Katherine Atkinson

Course Description

 1

A request for religious accommodation requires a much different response than a request for reasonable accommodation of a disability. Failure to understand the important distinctions between religious accommodations and those made for individuals with disabilities could lead to costly mistakes and embarrassing gaffes.

Join attorney Katherine Atkinson for the final session in our five-part Reasonable Accommodation in the Federal Workplace webinar series, and leave with specific guidance to help you with accommodation requests involving religious clothing and headwear, grooming, proselytizing, religious displays, and work schedules.

After a review of the relevant law and regulations law that pertain to religious accommodation, the instructor will discuss:

• What religions qualify for accommodation
• The definition of “undue hardship” and case examples
• The most common accommodations for religion
• Issues related to dress code and grooming
• What to do when employees request to be excused from performing certain job tasks because of religious reasons

Whether you’re an attorney, EEO program specialist, HR specialist or manager, you’ll want to be sure to join us for this important session.

This program meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240 per site, per session (payment made by July 20).
• Standard Tuition: $270 per site, per session (payment made July 21 or later).

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah Hopkins, Katherine Atkinson, Meghan Droste

Course Description

One of the most important and complex areas in federal employment law is the obligation to provide reasonable accommodation, whether it’s to qualified individuals with disabilities or for individuals with sincerely held religious beliefs. And the pandemic has made these laws even trickier and more important than usual.

The Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act is more than ten years old; the ADA is more than 30, and the Rehabilitation Act is nearing 50. However, too many agencies continue to follow outdated procedures that are not compliant with the law. Because there are so many complexities in the reasonable accommodation process, the best way to avoid pitfalls and to be sure you provide accommodations for people who are entitled is to follow the appropriate steps, in the proper order.

Yet, times change, and we learn new information about medical conditions, while new medications and treatments raise different issues. Technological advances create opportunities that previously didn’t exist. And once-in-a-lifetime pandemics create new, multifaceted challenges.

Updated for 2021, FELTG’s annual five-part series on reasonable accommodation provides an opportunity to re-familiarize yourself with the critical foundation of disability law, and apply it to the ever-evolving federal workplace. The series will tackle everything from the basics of the law to challenges, such as providing accommodations to teleworkers and accommodating invisible disabilities. You’ll learn from the mistakes others have made, as well as how the law differs for religious accommodation. Attend one session, or attend them all.

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Click on any event for a full description.

 5 (1 per webinar)

Session 1: Reasonable Accommodation Overview and Analysis (July 15)

Session 2: Accommodating Invisible Disabilities (July 22)

Session 3: Telework as Reasonable Accommodation (July 29)

Session 4: Reasonable Accommodation: The Mistakes Agencies Make (August 5)

Session 5: Religious Accommodations: How They’re Different from Disability Accommodations (August 12)

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $240.00 per site, per session (payment made by July 2).
• Standard Tuition: $270.00 per site, per session (payment made July 3 or later).
• Register for all five webinars by July 2 and pay only $1,150.00!

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Individual Registration Form

President Biden’s Executive Order requires all Federal employees to be vaccinated with no option for regular coronavirus testing to opt out of the mandate. What does this mean for employees who refuse to get vaccinated? Are there any religious exemptions that would allow employees to continue to work without vaccination? What about employees who cannot get vaccinated due to a disability – can agencies accommodate them?

Attorney Katherine Atkinson will not only share with you the latest guidance from the president’s EO, the EEOC and the CDC, but she will also explain how applying the basic EEO framework can answer the aforementioned and other puzzling EEO questions you may suddenly face. Because Ms. Atkinson will use a legal analysis to address these challenges, the answers and guidance you receive during this virtual training will be useful long after the coronavirus is gone.

• If a supervisor treats an employee like she has COVID-19, could that employee have a “regarded as” claim under the ADA/Rehabilitation Act?
• How would you handle an employee’s claim that he’s being harassed because he is at high risk for COVID-19, or has recovered from the virus?
• Does asking the pre-vaccination screening questions create a violation of Title II of the Genetic Information and Nondiscrimination Act?

Plus, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to ask questions about the unique problems you’re facing during these unprecedented times.

Learning takeaways

Attendees will learn how to determine:

• Whether an employee with COVID-19 or pre-existing respiratory sensitivities should receive a reasonable accommodation.
• How pregnant women fit into the framework of EEO and COVID-19.

This program runs from 1:00 – 4:30 eastern, with a 30-minute break from 2:30 – 3:00 eastern.

3

This program meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Download Individual Registration Form

Price

• Early Bird Tuition (register by September 3): $355
• Standard Tuition (register September 4 or later): $395
• Rates per registrant.
• Want to register a group? Group discounts for 10 or more attendees are available through September 17. Contact FELTG.

Event FAQs

• Can I attend Virtual Training from my government computer?
  • FELTG uses Webex to broadcast this Virtual Training Institute event. Many government computers and systems allow Webex access. If for some reason your firewall will not allow access, you’re welcome to use your personal email address to register, and to attend the sessions from your personal device.
• Can I earn CLE credits for this class?
  • CLE applications are the responsibility of each attendee; FELTG does not apply for the credits on behalf of attendees.  If you are seeking CLE credit, attendees may use the materials provided by FELTG in submission to your state bar. Attendees may also request a certificate of completion which will contain the number of training hours attended.
  • What if I want to attend a session but have a schedule conflict?
    • FELTG also plans to offer this live event periodically, so check our calendar for upcoming dates.
• Can I share my access link with co-workers?
  • No. Registration for this event is per individual, and access links may not be shared. Each link may only be used by one person.
• Can I register a teleworker?
  • This event is individual registration, so the cost is the same whether the person is teleworking or in an agency facility.
• How do I receive a group rate discount?
  • Group rates are available for agencies registering 10 or more individuals. Group discounts are available through September 17.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Katherine Atkinson

Course Description

Agencies face many challenges and unanswered questions as they attempt to bring workers back the physical workspace, especially as they pertain to reasonable accommodation requests and medical information. In this 60-minute webinar, the first in our three-part  Navigating the Return to the Federal Workplace series, Attorney at Law and FELTG Instructor Katherine Atkinson provide guidance for those challenges and answer those questions, such as:

• How do you accommodate someone with ‘long COVID’ or post-acute sequelae SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC)?
• What do you do with the results of an employee’s COVD-19 test?
• Where do you store the Certifications of Vaccination?
• Must you accommodate employees who refuse to get the vaccine?
• If a supervisor treats an employee like she has COVID-19, could that employee have a “regarded as” claim under the ADA/Rehabilitation Act?
• Do agencies have to provide a reasonable accommodation of permanent telework for an employee who refuses to get the vaccine for religious reasons?

Join us for the other two webinars in this three-part series:

• October 19: Vexing Vaccine Requirements: Responding to Requests for Exemptions 
• October 26: Post-Pandemic Accountability: Handling Employee Performance and Misconduct in a COVID-19 World

This webinar and this series meet the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $270 per site, per session (payment made by October 1).
• Standard Tuition: $295 per site, per session (payment made October 2 or later).
• Register for all three webinars by October 1 and pay only $785.

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per webinar per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah Hopkins, Katherine Atkinson

Course Description

When you think about it, the federal workforce’s response to the pandemic was nothing short of remarkable. A majority of employees began working remotely for the first time in their careers. And by most accounts, it was a success.

So you’d think the eventual return back to the physical workspace would be a breeze.

Think again.

Even before the delta variant began ravaging the country, there was uncertainty on how to best return to the workplace.  Now the variant has put us back almost to square one for a safe and easy return. This makes the Biden Administration’s recent Executive Order mandating all Federal employees and onsite contractors be vaccinated even more prescient.

Between the variant, the vaccination requirement, and the sheer challenge of creating a new hybrid work environment, there is more uncertainty than ever before. FELTG’s “The Return to the Workplace” webinar series offers to provide clear-cut answers, along with the appropriate framework for you to address these unique and unprecedented challenges.

October 12: Handling Pandemic-Related Reasonable Accommodation Requests and Medical Documentation

• How do you accommodate someone with ‘long COVID’ or post-acute sequelae SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC)?
• What do you do with the results of an employee’s COVID-19 test?
• Where do you store the Certifications of Vaccination?
• Must you accommodate employees who refuse to get the vaccine?
• If a supervisor treats an employee like she has COVID-19, could that employee have a “regarded as” claim under the ADA/Rehabilitation Act?
• Do agencies have to provide a reasonable accommodation for an employee who refuses to get the vaccine for religious reasons?

October 19: Vexing Vaccine Requirements: Responding to Requests for Exemptions 

• Does asking the pre-vaccination screening questions create a violation of Title II of the Genetic Information and Nondiscrimination Act?
• Can you require employees to provide proof of vaccination, rather than simply “attest” to vaccination status?
• What do you do if an employee refuses to share his or her vaccination status?
• How will you determine whether an employee’s religion or medical condition requests vaccination exemptions?

October 26: Post-Pandemic Accountability: Handling Employee Performance and Misconduct in a COVID-19 World

• How do you hold remote workers accountable for performance and conduct?
• Is failure to comply with a COVID-19 screening test a performance or conduct issue?
• How do you provide a performance demonstration period for an employee who is teleworking?
• What actions can you take against employees who refuse to get vaccinated?

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $270 per site, per session (payment made by October 1).
• Standard Tuition: $295 per site, per session (payment made October 2 or later).
• Register for all three webinars by October 1 and pay only $785.

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per webinar per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Katherine Atkinson

Course Description

Agencies face many challenges and unanswered questions as they attempt to bring workers back the physical workspace, especially as they pertain to vaccine requirements and attestations. In this 60-minute webinar, the second of our three-webinar Navigating the Return to the Federal Workplace series, Attorney at Law and FELTG Instructor Katherine Atkinson provide guidance for those challenges and answer those questions, such as:

• Does asking the pre-vaccination screening questions create a violation of Title II of the Genetic Information and Nondiscrimination Act?
• Can you require employees to provide proof of vaccination, rather than simply “attest” to vaccination status?
• What do you do if an employee refuses to share his or her vaccination status?
• How will you determine whether an employee’s religion or medical condition requests vaccination exemptions?
• How do you discipline an employee for lying on the certification of vaccination form?

Join us on October 26, for the final webinar in this series: Post-Pandemic Accountability: Handling Employee Performance and Misconduct in a COVID-19 World.

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $270 per site (payment made by October 1).
• Standard Tuition: $295 per site (payment made October 2 or later).
• Register for all three webinars in the Navigating the Return to the Federal Workplace series by October 1 and pay only $785.

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per webinar per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah Hopkins, Katherine Atkinson

Course Description

When you think about it, the federal workforce’s response to the pandemic was nothing short of remarkable. A majority of employees began working remotely for the first time in their careers. And by most accounts, it was a success.

So you’d think the eventual return back to the physical workspace would be a breeze.

Think again.

Even before the delta variant began ravaging the country, there was uncertainty on how to best return to the workplace.  Now the variant has put us back almost to square one for a safe and easy return. This makes the Biden Administration’s recent Executive Order mandating all Federal employees and onsite contractors be vaccinated even more prescient.

Between the variant, the vaccination requirement, and the sheer challenge of creating a new hybrid work environment, there is more uncertainty than ever before. FELTG’s “The Return to the Workplace” webinar series offers to provide clear-cut answers, along with the appropriate framework for you to address these unique and unprecedented challenges.

October 12: Handling Pandemic-Related Reasonable Accommodation Requests and Medical Documentation

• How do you accommodate someone with ‘long COVID’ or post-acute sequelae SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC)?
• What do you do with the results of an employee’s COVID-19 test?
• Where do you store the Certifications of Vaccination?
• Must you accommodate employees who refuse to get the vaccine?
• If a supervisor treats an employee like she has COVID-19, could that employee have a “regarded as” claim under the ADA/Rehabilitation Act?
• Do agencies have to provide a reasonable accommodation for an employee who refuses to get the vaccine for religious reasons?

October 19: Vexing Vaccine Requirements: Responding to Requests for Exemptions 

• Does asking the pre-vaccination screening questions create a violation of Title II of the Genetic Information and Nondiscrimination Act?
• Can you require employees to provide proof of vaccination, rather than simply “attest” to vaccination status?
• What do you do if an employee refuses to share his or her vaccination status?
• How will you determine whether an employee’s religion or medical condition requests vaccination exemptions?

October 26: Post-Pandemic Accountability: Handling Employee Performance and Misconduct in a COVID-19 World

• How do you hold remote workers accountable for performance and conduct?
• Is failure to comply with a COVID-19 screening test a performance or conduct issue?
• How do you provide a performance demonstration period for an employee who is teleworking?
• What actions can you take against employees who refuse to get vaccinated?

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $270 per site, per session (payment made by October 1).
• Standard Tuition: $295 per site, per session (payment made October 2 or later).
• Register for all three webinars by October 1 and pay only $785.

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per webinar per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah Hopkins

Course Description

Agencies face many challenges and unanswered questions about performance and conduct as they attempt to bring workers back the physical workspace, while maintaining some type of hybrid work environment. In this final webinar of our three-part  Navigating the Return to the Federal Workplace series, Attorney at Law and FELTG President Deborah Hopkins provide guidance for those challenges and answer those questions, such as:

• How do you hold remote workers accountable for performance and conduct?
• Is failure to comply with a COVID-19 screening test a performance or conduct issue?
• How do you provide a performance demonstration period for an employee who is teleworking?
• What discipline is appropriate for an employee who refuses to get the COVID-19 vaccine?

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $270 per site (payment made by October 1).
• Standard Tuition: $295 per site (payment made October 2 or later).
• Register for all three webinars in the  Navigating the Return to the Federal Workplace series by October 1 and pay only $785.

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per webinar per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah Hopkins, Katherine Atkinson

Course Description

When you think about it, the federal workforce’s response to the pandemic was nothing short of remarkable. A majority of employees began working remotely for the first time in their careers. And by most accounts, it was a success.

So you’d think the eventual return back to the physical workspace would be a breeze.

Think again.

Even before the delta variant began ravaging the country, there was uncertainty on how to best return to the workplace.  Now the variant has put us back almost to square one for a safe and easy return. This makes the Biden Administration’s recent Executive Order mandating all Federal employees and onsite contractors be vaccinated even more prescient.

Between the variant, the vaccination requirement, and the sheer challenge of creating a new hybrid work environment, there is more uncertainty than ever before. FELTG’s “The Return to the Workplace” webinar series offers to provide clear-cut answers, along with the appropriate framework for you to address these unique and unprecedented challenges.

October 12: Handling Pandemic-Related Reasonable Accommodation Requests and Medical Documentation

• How do you accommodate someone with ‘long COVID’ or post-acute sequelae SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC)?
• What do you do with the results of an employee’s COVID-19 test?
• Where do you store the Certifications of Vaccination?
• Must you accommodate employees who refuse to get the vaccine?
• If a supervisor treats an employee like she has COVID-19, could that employee have a “regarded as” claim under the ADA/Rehabilitation Act?
• Do agencies have to provide a reasonable accommodation for an employee who refuses to get the vaccine for religious reasons?

October 19: Vexing Vaccine Requirements: Responding to Requests for Exemptions 

• Does asking the pre-vaccination screening questions create a violation of Title II of the Genetic Information and Nondiscrimination Act?
• Can you require employees to provide proof of vaccination, rather than simply “attest” to vaccination status?
• What do you do if an employee refuses to share his or her vaccination status?
• How will you determine whether an employee’s religion or medical condition requests vaccination exemptions?

October 26: Post-Pandemic Accountability: Handling Employee Performance and Misconduct in a COVID-19 World

• How do you hold remote workers accountable for performance and conduct?
• Is failure to comply with a COVID-19 screening test a performance or conduct issue?
• How do you provide a performance demonstration period for an employee who is teleworking?
• What actions can you take against employees who refuse to get vaccinated?

This series meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $270 per site, per session (payment made by October 1).
• Standard Tuition: $295 per site, per session (payment made October 2 or later).
• Register for all three webinars by October 1 and pay only $785.

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per webinar per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Ricky Rowe, Deborah Hopkins

Course Description

Pet ownership increased and animal shelters emptied during COVID-enforced lockdowns in 2020. Undoubtedly, remote workers have enjoyed the therapeutic benefits that come with owning a pet. But does that make their new furry friends therapy or emotional support animals? And can no-longer-remote employees bring their new four-legged friends to the workplace? In most cases, the answer is an easy no. But if it’s a reasonable accommodation request, the answer isn’t quite as definitive.

The EEOC’s stance that an emotional support animal may be a required reasonable accommodation for a qualified individual with a disability, even if it is not a trained service dog, fails to provide an easy answer.

Attendees will learn how to:

• Determine the difference between a service animal and a therapy animal.
• Recognize when an emotional support animal would be a reasonable accommodation
• Effectively navigate the interactive process.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $270 per site, per webinar (payment required by September 27)
• Standard Tuition: $295 per site, per webinar (payments made September 28 or later)

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Individual Registration Form

About the Event

Federal employees have until November 22 to get vaccinated to comply with Executive Order 14043. The Biden Administration’s mandate is direct. However, a sizable percentage of the population still refuses to get the vaccination, and misinformation continues to spread. You should expect to have more than the usual share of requests for exemptions on either religious or medical grounds. How will you handle these requests? And how do you plan to discipline an employee who refused to get vaccinated?

Attorneys Katherine Atkinson and Deborah Hopkins (FELTG President), have the answers. They have stayed on top of the ever-changing guidance and mandates over the past year, providing FELTG customers with up-to-the-minute instruction on navigating the challenging issues related to COVID-19. Join them on November 3 for The Exemption Proves the Rule: Reasonable Accommodation, Discipline, and the Vaccine Mandate and you’ll leave with the basic framework for dealing with these unique and unprecedented challenges with a focus on:

• Reasonable accommodation for disability
• Reasonable accommodation for religion
• Discipline for vaccine-related misconduct

Ms. Hopkins and Ms. Atkinson will walk you through the legal analysis for addressing challenges in these areas, and answer all your questions, including:

• What medical conditions that qualify as disabilities under the ADA could exempt an employee from the vaccination mandate?
• What is the definition of religion under Title VII?
• When can you question the sincerity of an employee’s espoused religious belief?
• How do you discipline an employee for using falsified vaccine cards?

Join FELTG for this critical and timely training, from wherever you are working — agency office or home. The program will be presented live, and you’ll have time to ask questions and get answers in real time. This program runs from 1 pm – 4:30 pm eastern, with a 30-minute break from 2:30 – 3:00 eastern.

Download Individual Registration Form

Instructors

Deborah J. Hopkins, Katherine Atkinson

Price

• Early Bird Tuition (register by October 20): $355
• Standard Tuition (register October 21 or later): $395
• Rates per registrant.
• Want to register a group? Group discounts for 10 or more attendees are available through October 20. Contact FELTG.

Event FAQs

• Can I attend Virtual Training from my government computer?
  • FELTG uses Webex to broadcast this Virtual Training Institute event. Many government computers and systems allow Webex access. If for some reason your firewall will not allow access, you’re welcome to use your personal email address to register, and to attend the sessions from your personal device.
• Can I earn CLE credits for this class?
  • CLE applications are the responsibility of each attendee; FELTG does not apply for the credits on behalf of attendees.  If you are seeking CLE credit, attendees may use the materials provided by FELTG in submission to your state bar. Attendees may also request a certificate of completion which will contain the number of training hours attended.
• What if I want to attend a session but have a schedule conflict?
  • FELTG also plans to offer this live event periodically, so check our calendar for upcoming dates.
• Can I share my access link with co-workers?
  • No. Registration for this event is per individual, and access links may not be shared. Each link may only be used by one person.
• Can I register a teleworker?
  • This event is individual registration, so the cost is the same whether the person is teleworking or in an agency facility.
• How do I receive a group rate discount?
  • Group rates are available for agencies registering 10 or more individuals. Group discounts are available through October 20.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructor

Katherine Atkinson

Course Description

That Nov. 22 date is inching closer. And as the date gets closer, your backlog of requests for exemptions to the Biden Administration’s vaccination requirement is likely to continue to grow.

Reasonable accommodation can be challenging during normal times. But there remain many unanswered questions about employees seeking vaccination exemptions for or disability or religious reasons. In this 90-minute webinar, Attorney at Law and FELTG Instructor Katherine Atkinson provides guidance for those challenges and answers questions, such as:

• What medical conditions that qualify as disabilities under the ADA could exempt an employee from the vaccination mandate?
• When can you question the sincerity of an employee’s espoused religious belief?
• What if the employee seeking a religious accommodation has a letter from his church?
• How does the undue hardship analysis relate to allowing unvaccinated employees to work from home full-time?

Get the answers to these questions – and your questions – BEFORE you become too overwhelmed with exemption requests.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $295 per site (payment made by November 8).
• Standard Tuition: $325 per site (payment made November 9 or later).

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Registration Form

Instructors

Katherine Atkinson

Course Description

EEO law protects employees from reprisal based on EEO activity, and retaliation is asserted in almost 45 percent of EEO complaints.

Think about that as you process the numerous religious and reasonable accommodation requests for exceptions to the vaccine mandate coming across your desk. Those requests are a protected EEO activity. The EEOC is concerned enough about retaliation in pandemic-related situations that it recently published guidance on the topic.

In this 75-minute webinar, FELTG Instructor Katherine Atkinson will walk you through the details of the EEOC guidance, discuss the various forms of EEO reprisal and why it’s the most common category in discrimination findings, and provide important guidance on what can be done to limit retaliation from happening at your agency.

This is an important  area of focus in federal employee statutory protections, especially as it involves highly-charged emotional and political issues. Whether you’re an attorney, LER specialist, EEO specialist, or supervisor, you can’t afford to miss this event.

This webinar meets the President’s mandate to provide training on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the Federal workplace.

Price

• Early Bird Tuition: $295 per site (payment made by January 4).
• Standard Tuition: $325 per site (payment made January 5 or later).

Teleworkers may be added to a main site registration for $50 per webinar per teleworker, on a space-available basis.

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.

Download Individual Registration Form

President Biden’s Executive Order requires all Federal employees to be vaccinated with no option for regular coronavirus testing to opt out of the mandate. What does this mean for employees who refuse to get vaccinated? Are there any religious exemptions that would allow employees to continue to work without vaccination? What about employees who cannot get vaccinated due to a disability – can agencies accommodate them?

Price

• Early Bird Tuition (register by January 24): $355
• Standard Tuition (register January 25 or later): $395
• Rates per registrant.
• Want to register a group? Group discounts for 10 or more attendees are available through January 24. Contact FELTG.

Event FAQs

• Can I attend Virtual Training from my government computer?
  • FELTG uses Zoom to broadcast this Virtual Training Institute event. Many government computers and systems allow Zoom access. If for some reason your firewall will not allow access, you’re welcome to use your personal email address to register, and to attend the sessions from your personal device.
• Can I earn CLE credits for this class?
  • CLE applications are the responsibility of each attendee; FELTG does not apply for the credits on behalf of attendees.  If you are seeking CLE credit, attendees may use the materials provided by FELTG in submission to your state bar. Attendees may also request a certificate of completion which will contain the number of training hours attended.
• Can I share my access link with co-workers?
  • No. Registration for this event is per individual, and access links may not be shared. Each link may only be used by one person.
• Can I register a teleworker?
  • This event is individual registration, so the cost is the same whether the person is teleworking or in an agency facility.
• How do I receive a group rate discount?
  • Group rates are available for agencies registering 10 or more individuals. Group discounts are available through January 24. 

Cancellation and No-show Policy for Registered Participants: Cancellations made after the cancel date on the registration form will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. Pre-paid training using the “Pay Now” option will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses. No-shows will not be refunded or given credit toward future courses.