Accommodations should allow employees to fulfill essential job functions

Q         We’re planning to allow employees with underlying health conditions to telecommute as a temporary reasonable accommodation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on our assessment, however, they could perform only 50 percent of their essential functions from home. Can we modify their pay rate accordingly?

A   Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employers must provide reasonable accommodations to employees who can fulfill their essential job functions. Although many employers are going above and beyond to provide flexibility to employees during these unprecedented times, it’s risky to provide reasonable accommodations that won’t enable employees to fulfill their essential functions. Instead, work with such employees to find a solution that will enable them to complete all job responsibilities. Consider, perhaps, allowing high-risk employees to split their time between remote work and office work and implementing staggered shifts.

Additionally, employers facing this predicament should consider wage and hours issues under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Nonexempt employees are entitled to compensation only for work actually completed. If the employees performing only 50 percent of their essential functions are nonexempt, their pay rate can be modified accordingly, so long as their wages don’t dip below state and/or federal minimum wage provisions.