Enabling the duty to accommodate (Web sight)

Human resources professionals need to be well acquainted with the fast-moving and complex world of human rights legislation and the duty to accommodate.

How does a busy HR professional keep current on employers’ and employees’ rights and obligations and without being overwhelmed by a deluge of legal jargon? The sites highlighted here provide some clarity about the duty to accommodate and serve as sources for keeping informed about relevant legislation without needing a law degree.

Federal obligations
http://www.chrc-ccdp.ca/ee/bfe-eso.asp

The Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC) has a useful site with a well-structured and easily digestible summary of the duty to accommodate. The site succinctly covers topics such as: job competitions, job descriptions, job interviews, job orientations and exit interviews. Within the area entitled “Barrier-Free Employers and Employment Equity” there are several frequently asked questions along with a questionnaire to help assess the degree of compliance for any organization.

A guide to inclusion
http://www.chrc-ccdp.ca

Also found on the CHRC site are a number of useful articles on workplace discrimination, including one of the more comprehensive guides available for ramping-up on the duty to accommodate, A Guide to Creating an Inclusive Workplace. From the CHRC home page, click on publications; the guide is the second publication listed here.

An employer perspective
http://www.psc-cfp.gc.ca/accex/smrtshop/fall2002/nov26_qa_e.htm

Another site to get a practical foundation on accommodation was developed by the Public Service Commission of Canada. Here, the background reasons for the development of the law are provided along with a user-friendly series of Q&As, addressing, for example, what happens when the employee and employer disagree over what accommodations are in order.

A union perspective
http://www.cupe.ca/downloads/dutyaccom.pdf

Although slightly less politically neutral, the Canadian Union of Public Employees site provides a guide that is very readable. Disability Rights in the Workplace is certainly graphic-heavy, but may be the best place to begin understanding employers’ and employees’ rights and obligations.

Case studies and more
http://www.enablelink.org

Abilities Magazine has a number of articles in its back issues archive on the duty to accommodate. From the home page click on “Abilities Magazine” and then “Archives/Back Issues” and then enter “accommodation” into the keyword search. Among the articles is a case study, written by an HR professional, about how one organization was able to capitalize on the abilities of a university intern with a disability. Another article, Employers Fired Up Over Their Duty To Accommodate, recounts three victories by employees over their employers on the basis of workplace accommodation.

Not as hard as you think
http://www.workopolis.com

“Accommodation is usually not as difficult or as expensive as one might presume,” Michelle Falardeau-Ramsay, chief commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, says in an article on Workopolis’ Web site. “Close to 70 per cent of job accommodations cost less than $700, and 19 per cent cost between $690 and $2,760.” (From the home page click on “resources” and then a keyword search for “duty to accommodate.”)

Other sites of interest on employment law

Finally, whether the duty to accommodate is the focus of attention or not, several sites can help keep HR professionals current on labour laws.

At http://www.lexum.umontreal.ca/csc-scc/en/index.html, users can research Supreme of Canada decisions concerning the duty to accommodate.

Of relevance for Ontario employers, the Ontario Public Service Employees Union’s Web site http://www.opseu.org/legal/legalmain.htm is well-organized, constantly updated and easy to navigate.

A. Brown is president of Write On The Money — business writing and communications that drive your audiences to take the actions that you want. For more information, visit www.WriteOnTheMoney.com.

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