WORKSHOPS AND TRAINING: DUTY TO ACCOMMODATE

Progressive employers understand that diversity is a positive force within the workplace, and sophisticated employers further understand that the law demands that such diversity must be accommodated through policies that protect human rights. However, it is challenging for even a well-intentioned employer to keep abreast of the constantly-evolving and complex law in this area, particularly what is known as the “duty to accommodate”. This term refers to the legal requirement for employers to provide special allowances in the workplace to an employee who requires accommodation.

The Integrity Group will work with your organization ensure that it meets its obligations, and to enhance  your organization’s reputation for cultivating a respectful workplace.

This “duty to accommodate” often involves employees with disabilities or religious beliefs such that the duty may require an employer to provide special facilities or equipment to allow the employee to carry out his or her duties (such as providing voice-recognition software for an employee with a visual impairment) or to change an employee’s schedule to allow him or her to worship on what would normally be considered a traditional workday.

The Integrity Group’s Duty to Accommodate workshops are tailored to meet an organization’s particular needs and designed to be interactive and industry-appropriate. These workshops draw upon real-life scenarios so that the participants understand the pivotal role they can play in recognizing and implementing this concept in their workplace.

The objectives of the workshop are as follows:

• To provide your organization with a clear and current definition of the duty
  to accommodate and how it applies to your particular workplace
• To provide the most recent developments in the law pertaining to the duty to accommodate
• To explore what is “reasonable” accommodation and how it can be achieved, and at what point the legal concept of “undue hardship” comes into play
• To provide an understanding of the duty to accommodate within a unionized environment