Larry Ferguson
New Member
- Jurisdiction
- Pennsylvania
TLDR: After requesting an accommodation to continue working from home due to being immunocompromised, HR is considering the option of forcing me to take short term disability instead of accommodating my continued need to work from home.
I started working from home in March of 2020, and I had my first discussion with HR about returning to the office in mid 2021. Despite the fact that Delta was ravaging other communities and on its way to mine, my HR had thought it would be a good idea for me to return to the office, even though I am immunocompromised. Throughout the end of 2021, I had expressed concern several times about being immunocompromised and not being sure it was safe for me to return. I felt it was way too early to return to the office, especially as we heard about more and more variants arising. My doctor felt the same way and wrote me a note stating as much in the late summer of 2021. Everything seemed to be fine.
In a call during the fall of 2021, my HR rep called to ask me how I was doing with being remote and she also informed me that they were giving my unused office space away to a new hire (not a replacement, completely different job scope). I felt this was promising news for my continued ability to stay at home -- I can't work in the office if I don't have an office space! I also expressed frustration with not getting any feedback from my supervisor. She responded that my supervisor said I was doing a "great job," but they just "don't do virtual well." (It was a lame excuse because the only virtual thing I need is email communication from my supervisor, which I do not receive.) That was the extent of the conversation regarding my work and how my supervisor felt about my work.
In December, just before Omicron hit my area, HR called to tell me that management wants everyone back in the office starting in January. I emailed HR a copy of the letter my doctor wrote recommending I continue to work remotely while the pandemic was ongoing. I also requested an accommodation for my medical issue and I used the language of requesting a "reasonable accommodation."
One month later in January, HR called me to explain that my supervisor is covering aspects of my job since I can't be in the office and it's a burden on him. This was a complete surprise to me. There is only a small portion of my job that I can't do remotely, and this wouldn't exceed 10 hours per month. In turn, I offered to cover a portion of my supervisor's work that I can easily do to reduce his burden, which is completely doable. In fact, I'm often reaching out to my supervisor for work, and, on most occasions, I do not hear back from him. During that same call, HR also informed me that, while my supervisor is burdened with extra work, I am actually a year ahead of our machine shop when it comes to my work. So, I am simultaneously not working enough but also so productive that I'm ahead by a year. I have been working remotely for two years now and this is the first time that I have heard word one about this. It's very frustrating to say the least.
My HR then stated that they think it could be a good idea for me to go on short-term disability until the summer -- until the pandemic died down and then I could return to the office. This was a slap in the face because I'm completely able to work and I work quite efficiently -- especially with working from home where I have no co-workers to distract me. It is a great offense to me for my HR to suggest that I take the short-term disability route and reduce my pay to 60% of my salary due to the fact that I am an immunocompromised individual.
My question is: Can an employer force an employee to take short-term disability if the employee is actually able to do the work? I just feel like there is a middle ground that we can reach where I continue to be safe and work from home but take work off of my supervisor's plate. It also sounds like they want to put me on disability because I'm so far ahead of the machine shop that they don't have any remote work for me to do. I can't help but think that they want me to go on short-term disability for six months until there is more work built up for me for when I return to the office. Can anyone tell me any of this sounds like discrimination?
I started working from home in March of 2020, and I had my first discussion with HR about returning to the office in mid 2021. Despite the fact that Delta was ravaging other communities and on its way to mine, my HR had thought it would be a good idea for me to return to the office, even though I am immunocompromised. Throughout the end of 2021, I had expressed concern several times about being immunocompromised and not being sure it was safe for me to return. I felt it was way too early to return to the office, especially as we heard about more and more variants arising. My doctor felt the same way and wrote me a note stating as much in the late summer of 2021. Everything seemed to be fine.
In a call during the fall of 2021, my HR rep called to ask me how I was doing with being remote and she also informed me that they were giving my unused office space away to a new hire (not a replacement, completely different job scope). I felt this was promising news for my continued ability to stay at home -- I can't work in the office if I don't have an office space! I also expressed frustration with not getting any feedback from my supervisor. She responded that my supervisor said I was doing a "great job," but they just "don't do virtual well." (It was a lame excuse because the only virtual thing I need is email communication from my supervisor, which I do not receive.) That was the extent of the conversation regarding my work and how my supervisor felt about my work.
In December, just before Omicron hit my area, HR called to tell me that management wants everyone back in the office starting in January. I emailed HR a copy of the letter my doctor wrote recommending I continue to work remotely while the pandemic was ongoing. I also requested an accommodation for my medical issue and I used the language of requesting a "reasonable accommodation."
One month later in January, HR called me to explain that my supervisor is covering aspects of my job since I can't be in the office and it's a burden on him. This was a complete surprise to me. There is only a small portion of my job that I can't do remotely, and this wouldn't exceed 10 hours per month. In turn, I offered to cover a portion of my supervisor's work that I can easily do to reduce his burden, which is completely doable. In fact, I'm often reaching out to my supervisor for work, and, on most occasions, I do not hear back from him. During that same call, HR also informed me that, while my supervisor is burdened with extra work, I am actually a year ahead of our machine shop when it comes to my work. So, I am simultaneously not working enough but also so productive that I'm ahead by a year. I have been working remotely for two years now and this is the first time that I have heard word one about this. It's very frustrating to say the least.
My HR then stated that they think it could be a good idea for me to go on short-term disability until the summer -- until the pandemic died down and then I could return to the office. This was a slap in the face because I'm completely able to work and I work quite efficiently -- especially with working from home where I have no co-workers to distract me. It is a great offense to me for my HR to suggest that I take the short-term disability route and reduce my pay to 60% of my salary due to the fact that I am an immunocompromised individual.
My question is: Can an employer force an employee to take short-term disability if the employee is actually able to do the work? I just feel like there is a middle ground that we can reach where I continue to be safe and work from home but take work off of my supervisor's plate. It also sounds like they want to put me on disability because I'm so far ahead of the machine shop that they don't have any remote work for me to do. I can't help but think that they want me to go on short-term disability for six months until there is more work built up for me for when I return to the office. Can anyone tell me any of this sounds like discrimination?