Does an employer have to grant every request for reasonable accommodations?
No. An employer doesn’t have to grant the request if the accommodation would create an “undue hardship” because of significant expense or difficulty. Can an employer automatically deny a request for leave because the employee with cancer can’t specify an exact return date? No. Granting leave to an employee who is unable to provide a date of return may be considered a reasonable accommodation. The treatments for cancer and the severity of their side effects can be unpredictable. However, an employer can require the employee to provide periodic updates on her condition and possible date of return. After receiving these updates, the employer may re-evaluate whether continued leave constitutes an undue hardship. In addition to ADA protections, Ashton said those covered by the Family Medical Leave Act can take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave from work. The act allows employees with serious medical illnesses to use their leave intermittently, which lets them take time off for surgery and then
