Handling ADA requests for service animals at work

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many remote employees have no doubt strengthened their bonds with and emotional dependency on their pets and, in some cases, service animals. As a result, you should expect to see a surge in animal-related accommodation requests as workers return to their physical workplaces. Here are some ideas to help you properly prepare for the requests and mitigate the risks of an onset of disability discrimination claims.

Responding to animal-related accommodation requests

Under Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employers may not discriminate against a qualified individual because of a disability and must provide a reasonable accommodation if necessary for the person to perform the essential job functions. You aren’t required, however, to provide accommodations that present an undue hardship.

In evaluating requests for an animal to accompany an employee with a disability into the workplace, you don’t have to consider an accommodation allowing for all types of creatures. Instead, you need only consider requests to bring a service animal or emotional support or therapy animal that enables the person to perform the essential functions of their job.

Absent a companywide policy to the contrary, you aren’t required to consider requests to bring animals to work that serve solely as pets. The tricky part in drawing the distinction, however, is that Title I, which governs employment, contains no set definition of what constitutes a “service animal” or an “emotional support or therapy animal.”