Q: I am a performing arts teacher at an elementary school. I have been suffering from depression and am returning from six weeks of leave. Since I am new, I do not qualify for FMLA so my HR office gave me an accommodation when my doctor ordered me to stay home for six weeks to attend to my medical needs.
I have been released to return to work, but my doctor thinks it would be a good idea for me to teach from home three days per week. My school system states that this is not the best accommodation and is instead authorizing me to use unpaid leave up to two days per week as my accommodation. I don’t think this will be effective for me as the stress from the job and interactions with my supervisors also create additional anxiety and depression. How can I fight this? I feel I can teach from home as we did during the lockdown. I think my school system is being unreasonable.
A: I’m sorry to hear that you’re suffering from depression. I understand your frustration and commend you for prioritizing your well-being. Before advising you, I consulted a human resources professional who works in a large public school district. She feels for you, too, but added that your school system has been “more than reasonable.” In other words, you might be fighting an expensive and uphill battle.
From a legal standpoint, employers with 15 or more employees have an obligation to provide “reasonable accommodations” to applicants under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act. “Reasonable” means that the accommodations would not impose an “undue hardship” on the business or organization’s operations. You may feel that teaching virtually would be an acceptable compromise, but the school district feels it only can offer you part-time, unpaid leave.
While you could fight the decision — and only you can determine whether you have the means and the energy to wage a legal battle — the HR professional I consulted recommends approaching the problem from a different angle. If you’re a member of a union, for instance, you might be able to tap into a sick bank to get additional paid days off. Alternatively, you could pursue unpaid leave for the remainder of the year. While that would mean taking a short-term financial hit, it also would give you more time to recover. (A longer leave also might preserve your ability to stay in the profession for the long haul.) As a third option, you could ask for other accommodations that might help you without posing an “undue hardship” to your employer, such as a modified or altered schedule on days you’re in the building or fewer assigned duties. Or you could try to work within the existing constraints and closely monitor how you’re doing. If you go that route, however, make sure you have plenty of support in place from medical doctors and mental health professionals. And if, as you suspect, working in person three days a week hinders your recovery and the district still isn’t willing to revisit the scope of your accommodations, you may need to resign in order to focus fully on your health. I wish you well!
Click here for more Career Confidential
Have a question that you’d like Career Confidential to answer? Email contactphyllisfagell@gmail.com. All names and schools will remain confidential. No identifying information will be included in the published questions and answers.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Phyllis L. Fagell
Phyllis L. Fagell is the school counselor at Landon School in Washington, D.C., a therapist at the Chrysalis Group in Bethesda, Md., and the author of the Career Confidential blog. She is also the author of Middle School Matters and Middle School Superpowers, available at https://amzn.to/3Pw0pcu.
