Workplace Accommodations for Teleworkers with Disabilities

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Workplace Accommodations for Teleworkers with Disabilities

Co-sponsored by the Southeast DBTAC and

RERC on Workplace Accommodations

February 8, 2007

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Presenter

Karen Milchus, Co-DirectorRERC on Workplace Accommodations

FundingNat. Institute on

Disability& Rehabilitation

Research,U.S. Dept. of Education

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Online Meeting Tips

• Exit all background programs on your computer (e.g., Outlook, Word) to improve performance.

• Identify yourself each time you speak.

• Press and hold the Control Key (CTRL) to talk.

• Release the Control Key (CTRL) after you have finished speaking.

• Questions may be typed in if you do not have a working microphone.

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Agenda

• Telework as an Employment Option

• Case Study - Jane

• Telework Accommodations

• Implementation & Resources

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Telecommuting & Telework

• A situation where an employee is working anywhere but in their traditional office

• Telework = telecommuting = remote work

• New Freedom Initiative uses term “telework”

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Types of Teleworkers

• Primary office in home / Full-time teleworkers

• Shared office / Mobile professionals

• Dual offices: Occasional teleworkers or day extenders (evening and weekend)

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Agenda


– National Trends

– Telework as an Accommodation

– Who Teleworks?




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Telework: National Trends

• 1877 – first teleworker was a bank president with phone line to his home

• 1974 - “Telecommuting” coined in a transportation thesis by Jack Nilles

• New technologies (e.g., computers, fax) begin to open new possibilities for working remotely

• 1990’s - Early adopters | 2000’s - Rapid growth

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• 17% of Americans telework full-time while 30% telework at least one day a week. (DOL 2003)

• One estimate that 7% of employed persons with disabilities work from home 20+ hours. (Tahmincioglu)

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• By the year 2010, more than half of American wage earners will spend more than two days a week working outside the office.

(Sulzer Infrastructure Services, London)

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What is job accommodation?

Strategies, environmental modifications or assistive technology that help a person perform work-related tasks that he or she might not be able to perform otherwise, or might not be able to perform as efficiently

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Telework: A Reasonable Accommodation?

• U.S. EEOC recognizes telework as a “reasonable accommodation”

• New Freedom Initiative (NFI 2001) has a focus on Telework

• Telework may mitigate barriers associated with transportation and the physical characteristics of the workplace

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Home-Based Employment

Some of the issues related to teleworkers also apply to people who run their own home-based business.

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Who Wants to Telework?

• Work RERC conducted a retrospective study of VR accommodation referrals for Georgia

• At the time of the assessment, 23.7% intended to work from home

• Among those who could be reached for followup interviews, 27% worked from home

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Potential Teleworkers: OccupationsHome Worksite

% Rank % Rank

Office & Admin. Support 26.1% 1 36.6% 1

Computer & Mathematical Science 17.4% 2 6.1% 4

Sales & Related 13.0% 3 7.3% 2

Business & Financial Operations 13.0% 4 2.4% 5

Arts, Design, Entertain., Sports, Media 8.7% 5 1.2% 6

Production 4.3% 6 7.3% 2

Data from retrospective study of GA DRS assessments.Numbers in bold are statistically significant (X2<0.01)

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Potential Teleworkers: DisabilitiesHome Worksite

% Rank % Rank

SCI 27.0% 1 19.5% 1

TBI and CVA 14.3% 2 14.4% 4

Musculoskeletal 12.7% 3 11.5% 5

Visual Impairment 11.1% 4 18.4% 2

Multiple Sclerosis 9.5% 5 1.7%

Cerebral Palsy or Spina Bifida 6.3% (each) 14.9% 3

Developmental or Learning Disability 3.2% (each) 4.0%

Other 15.9% 14.4%

Data from retrospective study of GA DRS assessments.Numbers in bold are statistically significant (X2<0.01)

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Agenda


• Case Study – Jane

– Accommodation Process

– Accommodations Used by Jane



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Case Study - Jane

• Progressive MS

• Vocational rehabilitation client

• Interested in a telework position to accommodate problems with transportation and fluctuations in health

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Accommodation Process

• Worker assessment

• Work site / job analysis

• Select / provide accommodations

• Follow up

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Jane: Worker Assessment

• Progressive MS

• Uses a power wheelchair w/ joystick control

• Limited use of arms & hands (can raise right hand about four inches from lap)

• Occasional eye strain

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Job analysis

• What are the specific duties for the position

• What are the critical tasks and key result areas of the position

• What methods or processes are used to perform the tasks in the job

• What tools, materials and equipment are used to perform the tasks in the job

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Jane: Jobs

• Insurance Company (initial job; 2 years)

– Make phone calls to doctors to get updates on medical status of insurance claimants

• Publication Company (later job)

– Phone surveys of home maintenance and repair company customers to determine their satisfaction with services

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Task analysis

• Analysis of what an employee is required to do in terms of actions and/or cognitive processes to achieve a task

• Most job tasks can be broken into many smaller, discrete, singular, specific sub-behaviors

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Jane: Job Tasks (both jobs)

• Make phone calls

• Document comments

• Send electronic reports to employer

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Task analysis – telephone use

• Detect telephone ring, identify caller

• Lift receiver to ear

• Speak into receiver

• Hear responses

• Hang up

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Jane: Using a phone

• Speaker phone eliminates need to lift receiver

• Phone has a switch to activate headset pickup

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Jane: Document comments

• Records phone conversations with a tape recorder; reviews tape to complete report

– Voice-activated tape recorder

– Also used with mouthstick and metal extenders on buttons to increase leverage and ease of use

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Jane: Electronic reports

Computer with office software and:

• Voice recognition

• On-screen keyboard (Microsoft) substitutes for voice when too much background noise

• Larger monitor and Magnifier (Microsoft) used to reduce eyestrain

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Jane: Work space

• Custom computer table allows her to drive wheelchair into position over a platform that contains her standard mouse

• Workstation includes a stand for her mouthstick

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Jane: Other technology

Additional technology provided to reduce the need for an attendant during the day:

•Wheelchair accessible self-feeding tray

•Environmental control for lights

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Agenda




– Furnishings (Workstations)

– Computers & Computer Access

– Telecommunications

– Other Accommodations


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Reported Work Accommodations

Home (n=13) Worksite (n=35)

Computer access 53.8% 60.0%

Using work tools & furnishings 30.8% 48.6%

Communicating 23.1% 25.7%

Job set-up 15.4% 22.9%

Traversing through work environ. 7.7% 2.9%

Entering/exiting facility & rooms 7.7% 22.0%

Accessing workstation features 7.7% -

Accessing bathroom features - 5.7%

Environmental access - 2.9%

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Furnishings (Workstations)

Among the 13 people interviewed:

• Dedicated workstation/desk (6)

• Filing system (2); bookstand (1)

• Ergonomic chair, footrest, arm rests (1 each)

• Organized tool placement (1)

• Wheeled table to allow work from supine position (1)

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Effective Telework Workstation

• Distraction-free

• Existing workstation may not be appropriate

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• Adequate height / leg clearance

• Adequate work space

• Fits into the available space

Photo Source: SC Telework Loan Program

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• Materials & tools readily accessible (e.g., turn table)

• Workstation should fit the type of work

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Specialized Workstations

"Well, technically he's telecommuting."

Cartoon by David Harbaugh, Harvard Business Review

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Specialized Workstations

Example: Certified life coach; disability permits her to be upright only 3 hrs / day

• Monitor mount from Easy Chair Workstation

• Used existing couch, pillows, cushions

From Mark Russel, Assistive Technology SolutionsRESNA Job Accommodation Show & Tell

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Computers & Computer Access

Among the 13 interviewees:

• Eight needed a computer– Seven provided by VR– One provided by relative– Two replaced their computer post-VR

• Common AT for computer use included:– Voice input (5)– Trackball (3)– Mini keyboard, touchscreen,

scanner, screen magnification (1 each)

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Telecommunications

Among the 13 interviewees:

• Tape recorder for note taking (2)

• Fax modem (1)

• Few accessible phones provided

• Headsets double for voice / phone

• Other than Internet, no other conferencing / remote work technology was used

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Home Modifications

• Few home modifications made

• Removed walls, changed carpet, ramp

• May have been previously implemented

• Not an employer responsibility, but VR occasionally paid

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Agenda





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Implementation: Interactive Process

• Employer and employee should follow an interactive process to determine which accommodations should be obtained

– Employee should be involved – may have best insight as to what will work

– Employer makes final decision

• Equipment / telecommunication services may be needed simply for teleworking – not specifically as an accommodation

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Implementation: Accommodation Needs Are Ongoing (& not just VR)

Home (n=13)

Implemented Later

Computer Access 53.8% 53.8%

Using work tools & furnishings 30.8% 53.8%

Communicating 23.1% 15.4%

Job set-up 15.4% 30.8%

Traversing through work environ. 7.7% 15.4%

Entering/exiting facility & rooms 7.7% -

Accessing workstation features 7.7% -

Accessing bathroom features - -

Environmental access - 7.7%

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Implementation: Training

• Training

– Two received computer training

– Others needed training

– Person who received the fax modem never used it because he didn’t know how

– Input from co-workers becomes more difficult -- can’t just ask the person sitting next to you

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Implementation: New Challenges

• Task sharing becomes a less likely accommodation option

• Effective communication is a significant issue for making telework successful

– New collaborative and virtual workspaces may not be accessible

• Interoperability issues

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Resources: New Freedom Initiative

• Creates "Access to Telework" Fund

– $20 million annually in federal matching funds to states

– Used to guarantee low-income loans for people with disabilities to purchase equipment to telecommute from home.

• Makes a Company's Contribution of Computer and Internet Access for Home Use by Employees with Disabilities a Tax-Free Benefit.

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Resources

• ITAC – www.workingfromanywhere.org

• Canadian Telework Assn. – www.ivc.ca

• Careers from Home (Job listings) –www.careersfromhome.com

• Access to Telework Fund Program - www.resna.org/AFTAP/telework/

• Telework as a Reasonable Accomm. (EEOC fact sheet) - www.eeoc.gov/facts/telework.html

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Thank You

Workplace Accommodations for Teleworkers with Disabilities

Documents

Transcript of Workplace Accommodations for Teleworkers with Disabilities