"Scott" - Needed Reasonable Accommodations at Work

About 20 years ago, “Scott” was in a car accident and sustained a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Because of this, he has limitations in bending down and lifting items. Scott works for a janitorial company that subcontracts to a large manufacturing plant where he operates a floor scrubber. Over the past six years, his employer had been accommodating him by assigning him to a job with a lower level of stress and activity. More recently, his supervisor had started assigning him to perform extra tasks that required more bending and lifting. Even though he was already performing all his required duties, Scott struggled with the guilt of letting his team down and would perform the tasks anyways, thereby worsening his disability. Scott attempted to share with his employer how the tasks outside of his accommodations were affecting him and when they didn’t respond, he brought in a video to provide evidence of the negative impact. Almost immediately, the employer placed Scott on unpaid medical leave, requiring additional documentation for the accommodations. Although he provided a doctor’s letter stating his need for accommodations, the employer resisted. Scott called IDR looking for support.

At this point, IDR attorney, Zaida, and IDR Advocate, Bonnie, were assigned to the case and began doing some fact finding by securing as many details about his case as possible. Based on what was found, IDR was able to offer Scott informal advocacy services and sent his employer a demand letter and asked to meet with them to discuss Scott’s situation. Bonnie also contacted Scott’s neurologist’s office and obtained information about his disability and accommodation needs. Scott’s employer responded to IDR, but it took a final request from Zaida before the employer provided the requested records and agreed to a meeting.  Bonnie and Zaida attended the meeting with Scott and HR representatives from his employer. After Bonnie explained Scott’s current medical status and the doctor’s recommended accommodations, the employer agreed to allow Scott to work on his primary job assignment without being assigned additional tasks. With the support of IDR’s employment team, Scott was able to return to work in just over a month’s time. Since then, he has been able to perform his original role without medical complications and continues to be a solid team player.