Job Accommodation Network
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
1. What is JAN?
2. How can JAN help me?
3. What are the services JAN provides and how can I access these services?
4. Who is protected by the ADA?
5. What is reasonable accommodation?
6. How can an employee request reasonable accommodation from an employer?
7. When can an employer ask an individual for medical documentation?
8. How do we make our facility accessible?
9. Where can I get funding for accommodations and how much do accommodations typically cost?
10. Where can I get ADA posters, training, and videos?
#1: What is JAN? The Job Accommodation Network is a free service of the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) of the U.S. Department of Labor. JAN is one of several ODEP technical assistance projects. JAN represents the most comprehensive resource for job accommodations available.
JAN's mission is to facilitate the employment and retention of workers with disabilities by providing employers, employment providers, people with disabilities, their family members and other interested parties with information on job accommodations, self-employment and small business opportunities.
JAN consultants fulfill its mission by providing individualized worksite accommodation consultation and training through its toll free number and electronic services. JAN's work has greatly enhanced the job opportunities of people with disabilities by providing information on job accommodations since 1983. In 1990, JAN expanded to provide information on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other disability-related legislation.
This individualized consultation service is provided by teams of professional consultants who have advanced degrees and specialized training in issues of disability, workplace, rehabilitation, special education, industrial safety, law, and human resource management. The teams of consultants are supported by Information Assistants who have extensive training in disability etiquette and appropriate referral services. Graduate assistants from West Virginia University also assist in the support of the consultants.
All JAN consultants have obtained at least one Master's degree in their specialized fields, ranging from rehabilitation counseling to education and engineering. Some have completed terminal degrees in economics, law, and business.
The development of the JAN system has been achieved through the collaborative efforts of the U.S. DOL Office of Disability Employment Policy, the International Center for Disability Information at West Virginia University, and private industry throughout North America.
For additional information on JAN's electronic and personal services, download a JAN Fact Sheet from: http://www.jan.wvu.edu/media/JAN_Fact_Sheet.doc
#2: How can JAN help me? JAN assists employers, people with disabilities, rehabilitation professionals, and other to improve the employability of people with disabilities.
JAN provides consultation to employers in order to:
Increase the hiring, retention, and promotion of qualified employees with disabilities;
JAN provides consultation to people with disabilities in order to:
JAN provides consultation to rehabilitation professionals in order to:
JAN provides consultation to people affected by disability in order to:
#3: What are the services JAN provides and how can I access these services? The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) provides four person-to-person worksite accommodation technical assistance services, three electronic technical assistance services, a quarterly electronic newsletter, and an electronic topical newsflash called Consultants' Corner.
The person-to-person technical assistance services include:
1. Toll-free, individual worksite accommodation consultation with employers, employees, people with disabilities, rehabilitation counselors, and others.
2. Toll-free, individual self-employment accommodation consultation concerning information, counseling, and referrals about self-employment and small business ownership opportunities for people with disabilities.
3. Toll-free, individual consultation and referral information regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other disability legislation.
4. Training services to private and public organizations through JAN's annual symposium as well as through presentations and outreach at major national, regional, and local conferences. The JAN symposium is typically held in September. To view the schedule of workshops from the previous symposium go to: http://conference.jan.wvu.edu/. Training can also be arranged for other organizations and agencies if JAN consultant schedules permit.
Contact JAN to access all of these services.The electronic technical services include:
#4: Who is protected by the ADA? The ADA does not contain a list of covered disabilities so JAN consultants cannot tell callers whether an individual is protected by the Act. JAN consultants are able to provide guidance regarding the ADA's definition of disability from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the enforcing agency for the ADA, and the courts.1. JAN's extensive, fully accessible Web site (http://www.jan.wvu.edu/) contains over 300 disability specific accommodation publications including referral organizations and resources for purchasing accommodation equipment, full-text ADA, FMLA, and other disability related legislative actions, full-text EEOC guidance manuals, and link to thousands of local, regional, national public and private resource organizations. The site also contains a number of JAN publications in Spanish.
The Web site is designed to include six customer-focused portals. Each portal contains JAN informational products as well as local, state, and national resources specific to this particular customer group. Each portal also features a national organization known for their service provision to the particular portal customers. For instance, the "Federal" portal features the Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program (CAP). CAP's mission is to ensure people with disabilities have equal access to the information environment and opportunities at the Department of Defense and the Federal government. The DoD established CAP to provide assistive technology and accommodation services for individuals with visual, hearing, dexterity, and cognitive disabilities. CAP is the centrally funded program in the Federal government to provide accommodations.
2. JAN's Small Business and Self-Employment Service Web site (http://www.jan.wvu.edu/sbses/) containing comprehensive information about self-employment and small business ownership opportunities for people with disabilities.
3. JAN's Searchable On-line Accommodation Resource (SOAR) (http://www.jan.wvu.edu/soar/) designed to let users independently explore various accommodation options for people with disabilities in work and educational settings. After answering a few on-line questions, SOAR will automatically provide you with personalized accommodation information and if the accommodation requires equipment or assistive technology then SOAR will provide information about where the product can be purchased.
Customers can also regularly access practical solutions to accommodation questions and innovations in the field of employment by registering for JAN's quarterly electronic newsletter at subscribe@jan.wvu.edu. and/or the electronic topical newsflash called Consultants' Corner by e-mailing a message to jan@jan.wvu.edu with the subject line "corner."
#5: What is reasonable accommodation? In relation to the ADA, reasonable accommodation is any modification or adjustment to a job or the work environment that will enable a qualified applicant or employee with a disability to participate in the application process or to perform essential job functions. Reasonable accommodation also includes adjustments to assure that a qualified individual with a disability has rights and privileges in employment equal to those of employees without disabilities. JAN Consultants CAN provide callers with various accommodation solution ideas for a specific situation. JAN consultants cannot tell callers what is reasonable for a specific situation but are able to provide guidance regarding the ADA's definition of reasonable accommodation from the EEOC, the enforcing agency for the ADA, and the courts.
#6: How can an employee request reasonable accommodation from an employer? Though it is not required by the ADA, JAN suggests that employees ask for accommodations in writing. See JAN's Ideas for Writing an Accommodation Request Letter for information on how to form this letter.
#7: When can an employer ask an individual for medical documentation? Contact JAN directly for targeted responses and read EEOC's Enforcement Guidance on Disability-Related Inquiries and Medical Examinations and Preemployment Disability-Related Questions and Medical Examinations for an overview. Also, see JAN's Medical Inquiry Response to an Accommodation Request.
#8: How do we make our facility accessible? JAN provides extensive information on products and where to purchase accessible equipment. For information on ADA accessibility guidelines, visit JAN's ADA Links.
#9. Where can I get funding for accommodations and how much do accommodations typically cost?Tax incentives are available to employers. In addition, funding is through several organizations. Read JAN's Publication on Tax Incentives and visit JAN's funding links for additional information.
Throughout its history, JAN has collected cost and benefit data from its users. Data collected suggest that more than half of all accommodations cost less than $500. Further, JAN statistics show that most employers report financial benefits from providing accommodations due to a reduction in the cost of training new employees, a reduction in the cost of insurance, and an increase in worker productivity. In an effort to develop more complete and precise information and analysis on the costs and benefits of accommodation, JAN has partnered with the Law, Health Policy, and Disability Center (LHPDC) at the University of Iowa. Over the next four years, JAN and the LHPDC will systematically collect follow-up data from a statistically appropriate sample of JAN users. Dr. Peter Blanck, a disability statistics expert with an international reputation for his excellent work in the area of social policy economics, will head the effort. The results of this study will be published and made available to the public.
#10: Where can I get ADA posters, training, and videos? Contact your regional Disability Business and Technical Assistance Center at 800-949-4232 (V/TTY) or the EEOC at 800-669-3362 and 800-800-3302 (TTY) for information on ADA posters. JAN also distributes several videos.
While there are a number of sources for training throughout the United States, four sources are described below.
JAN offers an annual symposium with workshop presentations ranging from accommodating people with hidden disabilities to evacuation procedures for people with disabilities. To view the schedule of workshops from the previous symposium go to: http://symposium.jan.wvu.edu.
A second valuable source for regional ADA and disability-related training is the Disability and Business Technical Assistance Centers (DBTACs) http://www.dbtac.vcu.edu/ funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR). DBTAC training workshops and conferences include an annual symposium that has gained the reputation as the most comprehensive conferences available regarding disability-related issues.
A third valuable source of training is the National Association of ADA Coordinators (NAADAC). NAADAC is a non-profit organization founded in 1992 by a group of public and private sector professionals, who saw a need to educate entities regarding both the requirements and the opportunities of the ADA. The Association has become the leader in providing effective and economical conferences and workshops for ADA Coordinators employed by both public and private employers. NAADAC typically sponsors two conferences per year, one on each coast. More information can be found at: http://www.jan.wvu.edu/naadac/.
A fourth valuable source for disability related training is the Virginia Commonwealth University's Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Workplace Supports. Training opportunities can be found at: http://www.worksupport.com/Main/training.asp.