Accommodations

How to Request Reasonable Accommodation

The University at Albany is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to employees and applicants with disabilities or pregnancy-related conditions on a case-by-case basis through an interactive process overseen by Human Resources (HR).

Detailed information on the University’s reasonable accommodation policies and procedures is available below.  
 

Instructions for Prospective Employees (Applicants)

To request reasonable accommodation as an applicant, please email [email protected].

In your email, please outline the reasonable accommodation you are requesting and the reasons for which the accommodation is necessary. 

Instructions for Current Employees

To request reasonable accommodation as a current employee, please complete Form A: Application to Request Reasonable Accommodation of a Disability.  

Note: Student employees should work with HR on reasonable accommodation requests related to their campus job. For all other student requests, please contact Disability Access and Inclusion Student Services (DAISS). 

Once HR receives your request, a staff member will reply with next steps, which may include a request for medical documentation and/or other additional information.

You may be required to submit documentation from a medical provider to support your request. Documentation can be sent via mail or in person (University Administration Building, Suite 300), via fax to 518-437-4731, or via email to [email protected]. 
 

Medical Documentation Instructions

The documentation must be on your medical provider’s letterhead, with a date and their signature.  

Your medical provider should address the following questions to assist UAlbany in determining whether you have a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act and, if so, whether there is an accommodation that would enable you to perform the essential functions of your job in a reasonable matter or to enjoy equal benefits and privileges of employment.

  1. Does the employee have a physical or mental impairment? Please answer yes or no.  
     
  2. If the answer to Number 1 was “yes,” please provide the employee’s diagnosis and describe the nature and severity. 
     
  3. Is this impairment temporary, permanent, episodic or in remission? 
     
  4. If this impairment is temporary, how long will the impairment likely last? 
     
  5. If this impairment is episodic or in remission, please explain. 
     
  6. Does this impairment substantially affect one or more major life activities or functions of this employee? Please answer yes or no. 
     
  7. If the answer to Number 6 was “yes,” please specifically list the major life activities and describe how each is affected. 
     
  8. Please describe the functional limitation(s) of this employee caused by condition(s) or impairment(s) described above and the extent that the impairment limits the employee’s ability to perform those activities. 
     
  9. Please describe how the limitation(s) identified above affects the employee’s ability to perform their job duties. 
     
  10. Please describe any recommended accommodation(s) that may enable the employee to perform their job duties or essential functions and explain the relationship of the accommodation to the functional limitation. 

 

UAlbany Policy & Procedure on Reasonable Accommodations for State Employees

policies-procedures
Policy Purpose

To set forth the University’s commitment to provide reasonable accommodation to employees and applicants with disabilities or pregnancy-related conditions on a case-by-case basis through an interactive process.

Responsible Office & University Official

Responsible Office: Office of Human Resources (“OHR”)

Responsible University Official: Benefits Manager or Benefits Manager’s designee

The Benefits Manager or the Benefits Manager’s designee from OHR is the Responsible University Official and designated contact person for employees with disabilities requesting reasonable accommodation.  

This individual follows University policy and procedure for employee requests for accommodation and is available to assist throughout the process.  

Contact information is as follows:

Rhonda Haines 
Director for Workforce Planning  
Office of Human Resources 
UAB 300 
1400 Washington Avenue Albany, NY 12222  
Phone: 518-437-4700
Fax: 518-437-4731  
[email protected] 

Policy Statement

The University at Albany (“University”) is committed to assuring equal employment opportunity for persons with disabilities.  

To this end, it is the University’s policy to provide reasonable accommodation to a qualified person with a disability to enable such person to perform the essential functions of the University position for which they are applying, or in which they are employed.

This policy is based on the New York State Human Rights Law, Sections 503/504 of the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and all applicable Executive Orders and Memoranda.  

The policy applies to all employment practices and actions. It includes, but is not limited to:

  • Recruitment
  • The job application process
  • Examination and testing
  • Hiring
  • Training
  • Disciplinary actions
  • Rates of pay or other compensation
  • Advancement
  • Classification
  • Transfer and reassignment
  • Promotions

Otherwise qualified individuals with documented disabilities are eligible to request reasonable accommodation. The responsibility for initiating a request for accommodation lies with the individual with a disability.  

Every individual making a request for reasonable accommodation must provide sufficient documentation to support the request. Submitted documentation must be from an appropriate, qualified professional.  

In accordance with federal and state regulation, the University will treat disability-related information in a confidential manner. 

Procedures
  • 1. Requesting Reasonable Accommodation:  
     
    • a. Employees or applicants with disabilities may request a reasonable accommodation regardless of title, salary grade, bargaining unit, employment status or jurisdictional classification. An employee with a disability may request an accommodation at any time.  
       
    • b. All requests for reasonable accommodation must be processed by the Responsible University Official. The Responsible University Official will process the request in consultation with the appropriate parties, which may include the supervisor/department in the case of an employee.  
       
    • c. Only the Responsible University Official may render a determination on any such request for reasonable accommodation. Supervisors/Departments do not have authority to approve employee requests for reasonable accommodation.  
       
    • d. The responsibility for initiating a request for accommodation lies with the individual with a disability. Current employees requesting accommodation must submit the University’s Form A: Application to Request Reasonable Accommodation of a Disability to the Responsible University Official. If the request is made to the employee’s supervisor, the supervisor must forward the request to the Responsible University Official. Applicants may email [email protected] to request accommodation.
       
    • e. The Responsible University Official may request additional information or supporting documentation from the employee or applicant requesting reasonable accommodation.  

      Such additional information/supporting documentation must be provided to the Responsible University Official, upon request, in order to continue with the review and assessment process.  

      Such information/documentation includes, but is not limited to, information regarding the specific functional limitations of the individual, information regarding the precise job limitations imposed by the disability, medical documentation, and/or information regarding specific type or types of accommodations that might be effective. 

      The Responsible University Official may require the individual requesting accommodation to submit Form B: Supplemental Information/Medical Documentation.
       
    • f. Once the Responsible University Official has been provided with sufficient information/documentation, such official will determine whether or not there is an accommodation that would enable the individual to perform the essential functions of their job in a reasonable manner, or to enjoy equal benefits and privileges of employment. Such determination will be made in consultation with the employee’s supervisor.  
       
    • g. The appropriateness of an accommodation is determined through an interactive process that involves the individual with a disability, the individual’s supervisor/department (where applicable), and the Responsible University Official. The University is ultimately responsible for selecting the accommodation that enables the employee to perform the essential functions of the position.  
       
  • 2. Appeal of Denial or Modification of Reasonable Accommodation  
     
    • a. Where the Responsible University Official determines that the University will offer an accommodation different from the one requested and/or the University is unable to provide a reasonable accommodation, the individual requesting accommodation will be provided with information on additional alternatives, which includes filing an appeal or filing a discrimination complaint if the individual believes that the University’s denial of the accommodation was unlawful.  
       
    • b. An individual wishing to initiate an appeal must do so within 15 calendar days from the date of denial or modification of a reasonable accommodation by submitting a written complaint to the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.  

      The Office of Diversity and Inclusion shall first mediate to try to resolve the issues informally between the employee and the University to find an appropriate accommodation.  

      If an appropriate accommodation cannot be determined, then the Office of Diversity and Inclusion shall investigate the complaint and make a recommendation to the President of the University. The President will make the final decision on the appeal.  
       
    • c. An individual wishing to file a discrimination complaint should follow the University’s Discrimination Complaint Procedure.  

      Such procedure contains pertinent information regarding the options for filing internal complaints or external complaints through federal and/or State oversight agencies, including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the New York State Division of Human Rights.