“Disability accommodation.”

Say it. What do you think of when you read and say those words?

Opportunity?

Investment?

Increased workplace morale?

If not, your attitude toward disability accommodations could be costing your organization valuable money. Here are the three ways your attitude about disability accommodations is preventing your organization from reaching its maximum potential.

#1: You equate “disability accommodation” with dollar signs . . . and not in a good way.

Unfortunately, this reaction is all too common among managers and HR professionals, but it’s completely unjustified. According to a study conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Job Accommodation Network (JAN), 59% of employers who make accommodations for disabled employees spend absolutely nothing to provide the accommodations. The other 41% of employers reported spending about $500 per accommodation.

Most organizations wouldn’t balk at the idea of spending $500 to train an employee to learn a new software program or attend an industry professional conference. Why, then, do so many employers regard disability accommodations as losses rather than opportunities for investment?

Instead of focusing on how the upfront cost of the accommodation will affect your organization’s bottom line this quarter, think of the accommodation as an investment in your company’s long-term human capital. The same JAN study that revealed most accommodations are inexpensive also found that 63% of employers who provided disability accommodations reported an “increased overall company morale”.

Providing reasonable accommodations to employees living with disabilities gives employers a wonderful opportunity to show their humanity while investing in the organization. The employees receiving the reasonable accommodations, along with their non-disabled co-workers, are more likely to view their employers as human beings and not as corporate drones.

#2: We can’t provide the equipment/ leave/ schedule the employee requested as a disability accommodation, so there’s nothing we can do, right?

Not so fast! Even if the cost of providing an accommodation is more than a few hundred dollars, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended, requires most employers to provide reasonable accommodations to disabled employees – unless providing the accommodation would result in an undue hardship for the employer.

How do you know if the accommodation will result in an undue hardship for your organization? According to the U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC’s) online guidance, “Undue hardship means that the accommodation would be too difficult or too expensive to provide, in light of the employer’s size, financial resources, and the needs of the business.”

Even if your organization decides the requested accommodation is far more than what it can provide, it should still think about what it can do to accommodate the employee. The EEOC’s online guidance emphasizes that employers do not have to provide the requested accommodation. If more than one accommodation is effective, then the employer can choose which accommodation to provide.

For example, let’s say Juan is the Director of HR for a growing internet startup. One of the salespeople for his company, Tim, has been diagnosed with ADHD and an anxiety disorder. Tim’s doctor has recommended that Tim work in silence and in a solitary place to help manage his ADHD symptoms. Tim meets with Juan and proposes constructing an elaborate soundproofed cubicle in one corner of the office’s open design. The price is far more than what the company can afford.

Juan starts doing some research into the matter and proposes an alternative, yet effective and affordable, accommodation for Tim. Juan offers to provide Tim with noise canceling headphones and a workspace in a part of the office that is away from the visual distractions that bother Tim. These accommodations meet Tim’s doctor’s recommendations and are just as effective as the more expensive solutions suggested by Tim.

If you’re having trouble figuring out what alternative accommodations might work for your employee, take a look at the Job Accommodation Network’s (JAN) website. They have a plethora of resources to help your organization discover accommodation options for employees, and their services are completely free!

#3: There really isn’t an accommodation that will allow the employee to perform his/ her job. We really are done now, right?

Maybe. (Probably not.) Does your organization have any other open positions the employee could perform? If so, you need to offer those positions to the employee before any separation in employment. The disabled employee in need of an accommodation should not have to apply and/ or compete for these positions if he or she is qualified to perform the work.

Example: Angela works as a salesperson for a car dealership. When she’s diagnosed with cancer, her car dealership provides her with an accommodation of leave without pay. After 18 months of treatment, Angela’s cancer is in remission, but her immune system is suppressed, and it prevents her from spending too much time in public places. After 18 months without Angela, the dealership really needs to fill her position.

Since Angela and her doctor are uncertain of when she will be able to return to work in a public environment, the car dealership fills Angela’s sales position with a new employee, but it offers Angela its open position in the accounting department since Angela is qualified for the position.

Although the dealership anticipated hiring an accounting employee to work on-site at its office, it consults with its IT service and discovers that it can set up Angela’s home office with some existing computer equipment and a monthly voucher for high-speed broadband service at an affordable rate.

Angela misses working in sales, but she also knows it’s just not possible for her to work in a face-to-face sales environment right now. She’s happy to work for an employer who provided her with extensive leave and an option to work from home. The car dealership also gets to keep a reliable employee who already understands its business. An added bonus is that Angela’s co-workers get to see their employer treating Angela with humanity. Everyone benefits!

Even though it may not seem like it at first, disability accommodations are a great way to enhance your workplace culture and cultivate employee engagement. With a little practice and ingenuity, you can start to see workplace accommodations as a valuable tool for organizational growth.