how long should it take for HR to tell me if my accommodation request will be granted?

A reader writes:

I was diagnosed with ADHD a few months ago, and this past January, my company decided that all “hybrid” employees (my whole team is considered hybrid) need to be in the office a minimum of three days per week.

I didn’t think I could do it, but I wanted to try before I said anything. I’ve tried for several weeks and found that I definitely can’t do three days in a row. But I’m also having a really hard time coming in for the third (non-consecutive) day, so I asked for the accommodation of coming in two days per week, which is a pretty typical accommodation for people with ADHD. My therapist wrote a letter about the situation, and I included it with my request.

About a week after I emailed the request (that’s the specified procedure), I meet with an HR person who asked me a lot of questions. She said they have to talk with Legal and some other people before they let me know if they’ll grant my request. I got the impression that this was a new thing for them, and they aren’t sure how to proceed. I could be wrong, but that’s how it seemed.

The HR person said at one point that they would do “rolling” confirmations to see if I still need the accommodation. I was surprised and said I wasn’t ever going to NOT have ADHD, so that didn’t make sense to me.

I made sure to tell her that I got the highest rating that you can get on my performance review in 2024 and that I wanted the accommodation to be able to continue working at that level. She asked if I would come in to the office more than two days if there was an urgent need, and I said I would.

It’s been almost four weeks since I sent the request to HR, and I really need to stop having to come in three days/week. The stress is making me want to cry right now.

I’m planning to send an email asking for an update. Is there any specific language I should use (or avoid)?

If they deny my request, what can I do? My boss is completely fine with any of us doing what we need, including WFH days, but he is under pressure to uphold the policy of three days in the office.

I’m in my late 50s and I need to keep working for at least 10 more years, so I’m afraid to rock the boat too much, but I can’t keep up this schedule for much longer without risking my physical and mental health. It’s so upsetting that it feels like the gains I’ve been able to make with the medication are being negated by this added stress.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) doesn’t set a specific timeline for an employer to respond to an accommodation request. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) does state that an employer must respond “expeditiously” but doesn’t get specific about what that means. Instead, they say:

“An employer should respond expeditiously to a request for reasonable accommodation. If the employer and the individual with a disability need to engage in an interactive process, this too should proceed as quickly as possible. Similarly, the employer should act promptly to provide the reasonable accommodation. Unnecessary delays can result in a violation of the ADA.”

They also offer examples to illustrate what they mean. In one, an employee who uses a wheelchair asks his manager for an accessible parking space, because the existing spaces are too narrow to extend the ramp from his van. When his manager doesn’t act on the request, the employee raises it a second time, but two months after the initial request, nothing has been done. The EEOC says, “Although the supervisor never definitively denies the request, the lack of action under these circumstances amounts to a denial, and thus violates the ADA.” In another example, a blind employee requests adaptive equipment for her computer and the only company that sells what she needs takes three months for delivery. The EEOC explains the wait to implement the accommodation is not an ADA violation because the employer moved as quickly as it could to fulfill the request.

The EEOC also says:

“In determining whether there has been an unnecessary delay in responding to a request for reasonable accommodation, relevant factors would include: (1) the reason(s) for the delay; (2) the length of the delay; (3) how much the individual with a disability and the agency each contributed to the delay; (4) what the agency was doing during the delay; and (5) whether the required accommodation was simple or complex to provide.”

Basically, they use a “reasonableness” standard, and there’s some room for interpretation there, but your employer shouldn’t just be letting your request sit.

It’s been a month, so it’s reasonable to follow up. Send an email with the words “request for update on accommodation request under the Americans with Disabilities Act.” In the body of the email, say something like: “On (date) I requested a formal accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. I have not heard back, and I am writing to formally request an update on the status of my request.”

If you still don’t hear back 10 days after that, email again. Subject line: “second request for update on accommodation request under the Americans with Disabilities Act.” Email body: “On (date) I requested a formal accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. I followed up on (date) but have not heard back. As you know, the ADA requires employers to respond expeditiously to a request for accommodation and, if there is a need to engage in an interactive process, to proceed with that as quickly as possible. Could you let me know what timeline to expect?”

You asked what you can do if they deny your request. At that point — or earlier, if they continue to delay — you’d want to talk with an employment lawyer to help you navigate this. That doesn’t necessarily mean having them contact the employer on your behalf; it can just mean that they advise you from behind the scenes (or it might mean more, depending on what they advise). But you have legal rights here and a lawyer will help ensure they’re protected.

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