May 2023 Federal Employment Law Training Group Newsletter
The True Cost of Accommodation
I recently asked an onsite training class how much the average reasonable accommodation (RA) costs an employer. Guesses varied between $500 and $10,000 – and they were all too high. According to a recent report issued by the Job Accommodation Network (JAN), the average cost of an RA is $300, and over 49% of RAs cost the employer nothing at all. Not a dime.
As RA requests continue to increase, coinciding with return to the workplace orders, we know you still have questions, so join us for Reasonable Accommodation: Meeting Post-pandemic Challenges in Your Agency, June 14 from 1-3pm eastern. We’ll discuss new requests for telework, revisiting existing accommodations, what happens now that the vaccine requirement is over, and more. Or, if your focus is more on attendance-related RA issues, including employees who are too sick to come to work, join us for Absence, Leave Abuse & Medical Issues Week June 5-9.
May’s newsletter addresses EEO reprisal, deciding official mistakes, reassignments, the excepted service, and applicant notification of EEO rights.
Take care,
Deborah J. Hopkins, FELTG President
Don’t Become a Meme: Know What Is a Protected EEO Activity
By Dan Gephart, May 16, 2023 Record scratch. Freeze frame. “Yep, that’s me. You’re probably wondering how I got here.” I often think of this movie-cliche-turned-meme when I read or hear about EEO reprisal. I picture a supervisor, sitting in an EEOC-ordered training,...
The Board Saves the Deciding Official; Agency Prevails Despite DO Mistakes
By Deborah J. Hopkins, May 16, 2023 As we work our way through all the cases coming out of MSPB’s backlog, some catch our attention more than others, including Lott v. Army, SF-0752-16-0490-I-1 (Apr. 10, 2023)(NP). In this decision, the material facts were not in...
The Good News: Reassignment May Be the Best Thing for Everyone
By Ann Boehm, May 16, 2023 Our FELTG classes on performance and misconduct emphasize that before supervisors take action against a problem employee, they try everything else first. Reassignment is one of the suggested things to try. I worked in the Federal government...
Applicant Failed Polygraph, But Agency Failed to Provide EEO Process Info
By Deborah J. Hopkins, May 16, 2023 A new case from the EEOC reminds us it’s important to notify applicants about the EEO process. Lela B. v. DHS/USSS, EEOC Appeal No. 2023000348 (Apr. 20, 2023). The complainant applied for a Uniformed Division Officer position at the...
Making Sense of Excepted Service, Trial Periods, and Appeal Rights
By Barbara Haga, May 16, 2023 Practitioners often ask me about when an excepted service employee has appeal rights. The answer to this question is not as simple as it might seem. Let’s look at what excepted service is all about. Depending on the agencies you have...