Employee PWFA Accommodations

Employee PWFA Accommodations

Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation is charged with coordinating UT Austin’s compliance with the provisions of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA).

The PWFA allows employees with uncomplicated pregnancies to seek accommodations, recognizing that even uncomplicated pregnancies may create limitations for employees. The physical or mental condition leading the worker to seek an accommodation can be a modest, minor, and/or episodic problem or impediment. There is no threshold of severity required under the PWFA. This is to ensure that employees and applicants, including those with uncomplicated pregnancies, have access to accommodations that will, to the extent possible, maintain their health or the health of their pregnancies. The PWFA also covers existing conditions that are exacerbated by, and therefore related to, pregnancy or childbirth, such as high blood pressure, anxiety, or carpal tunnel syndrome.

Employee Accommodation Request Forms

To determine whether an employee is eligible for workplace accommodations under the PWFA, they will need to provide written documentation from their licensed health care provider. If you believe you need a workplace accommodation under the PWFA, please review and complete the following:

• Employee Accommodation Request Form (Submit Online)

• Employee Accommodation Medical Certification Form (PDF)

• Healthcare Provider Cover Letter (PDF)

You can request to have the paperwork mailed to you by contacting Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation via email at ada@austin.utexas.edu.

Submit Accommodation Paperwork

• Via email at: ada@austin.utexas.edu

• By fax at: 512-475-7730

Overview of the Employee PWFA Accommodation Process

UT Austin is required by law to provide reasonable workplace accommodations to qualified employees experiencing limitations associated with pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions under the PWFA. Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation is charged with coordinating UT Austin’s compliance with the PWFA. The central purpose of the PWFA is to keep pregnant and postpartum employees in the workforce. The PWFA requires UT Austin to engage in the interactive process to identify reasonable accommodations. Under the PWFA, reasonable accommodations are intended to enable an employee to remain in active work status. 

The determination of reasonable workplace accommodations is a collaborative and interactive process between Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation, the employee seeking workplace accommodations, the employee’s supervisor and/or other appropriate personnel (e.g., Human Resources or Leave Management) as needed.

While most accommodations under the PWFA can be managed at the departmental level, Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation is available to facilitate the process when situations are more complex. Documentation from an individual’s healthcare provider is necessary in these situations to assess the limitations associated with one’s condition(s) and what workplace accommodations are appropriate.

Examples of reasonable accommodations that may be available to employees under the PWFA include, but are not limited to: 

• Offering additional, longer, or more flexible breaks to eat, drink, rest, or use the restroom. 

• Changing a work schedule, such as having shorter hours, part-time work, or a later start time. Changing food or drink policies to allow a worker to have a water bottle or food. 

• Permitting the use of paid leave (whether accrued, short-term disability, or another type of employer benefit) or providing unpaid leave, including to attend health care-related appointments and to recover from childbirth. 

• For physically demanding roles, a short-term assignment to light duty or accommodating a worker’s limited inability to perform an essential function of a job by suspending, on a temporary basis, the requirement that the employee perform that function, if the inability to perform the essential function is temporary and the worker could perform the essential function in the near future.

Initiating the PWFA Accommodation Process

Employees seeking workplace accommodation(s) are responsible for initiating contact Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation and requesting information regarding workplace accommodations. An employee may request a workplace accommodation at any time, either orally or in writing. A request is any communication in which an individual asks or states they need UT Austin to provide or to change something because of limitations associated with pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions. A supervisor, manager, or Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation will ask an individual whether they are requesting a reasonable workplace accommodation if the nature of the initial communication is unclear. Supervisors who receive a request for accommodation should refer the employee to Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation via email at ada@austin.utexas.edu.

Employees may initially consult with Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation without first informing their supervisor. Supervisors are part of the process and will be brought into the discussion after the employee has met with Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation. It is important to note that in having this discussion, Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation will share the employee is seeking an accommodation under the PWFA, but they do not share the medical documentation with the supervisor. Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation maintains the focus on the limitations of the condition(s) and suggested workplace accommodations.

Processing the Request

To determine whether an employee is eligible for workplace accommodations under the PWFA, they will need to provide written documentation from their licensed health care provider concerning their condition(s). After receiving the documentation from the employee’s health care provider, Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation will review the medical information to determine its adequacy. If the information provided is incomplete, unclear, or inconsistent, Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation may request that the employee obtain additional or clarifying information from their healthcare provider.

Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation has the authority to obtain, at departmental expense, an independent medical opinion concerning the impairment for which an employee seeks a workplace accommodation.

Interactive Process

Once an employee has submitted their completed paperwork, Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation will reach out to schedule a time to meet. Communication is a priority throughout the entire process, but particularly when the specific limitation, problem, or barrier is unclear; when an effective workplace accommodation is not obvious; or when the parties are considering different forms of reasonable workplace accommodation. After meeting with an employee, Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation will reach out to the employee’s supervisor to discuss the workplace accommodations being requested and explore the feasibility of their implementation.

There may be instances where there is no reasonable workplace accommodation that enables the employee to perform the essential functions of their job. Although there is a requirement to facilitate the interactive process and explore whether there is a reasonable accommodation, there is no requirement to provide the exact accommodation requested by the individual.

Confidentiality

Any records or information obtained by Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation as a part of the accommodation process that reflect diagnosis, evaluation, or treatment of an employee’s medical condition is considered confidential. Such records shall be shared with only those UT Austin employees who have a need to know to implement the workplace accommodation process; and shall not be released except as required by law. PWFA related files are kept separate and apart from the location of personnel files and access is limited to Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation. Personnel involved in evaluating a workplace accommodation request are not covered entities as defined in the HIPAA rules. With certain exceptions, Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation will not disclose the diagnostic or treatment information (including the PWFA file) of employees participating in the workplace accommodation process. There are, however, instances when the aforementioned information is shared with certain individuals such as human resource personnel, first aid and safety personnel, or UT Austin personnel investigating compliance with the PWFA (including Compliance & Legal). Knowledge that an employee has an approved workplace accommodation is limited to those involved in the workplace accommodation process. Supervisors and staff involved should take care to maintain confidentiality. Faculty with workplace accommodations related to their building assignment need to be aware that Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation will also inform their department’s course scheduler of the approved workplace accommodation.

UT Austin Resources

The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides eligible employees of covered employers with job-protected leave for qualifying family and medical reasons and requires continuation of their group health benefits under the same conditions as if they had not taken leave. FMLA leave may be unpaid or used at the same time as employer-provided paid leave. Employees are eligible if they work for a covered employer for at least 12 months and have at least 1,250 hours of service with the employer during the 12 months before their FMLA leave starts. HOP 5-4310: Family Medical Leave.

The Sick Leave Pool (SLP) is a reserve of sick time off hours donated by employees to provide eligible employees with paid sick time off for catastrophic medical conditions. Employees suffering from a catastrophic condition, or who have an *immediate family member suffering from a catastrophic condition and are appointed to work at least 20 hours per week for at least 4.5 months are eligible to apply for SLP hours. Eligible employees must exhaust all their own paid time off prior to applying for and receiving a SLP award. Students in positions where student status is a requirement for employment are not eligible. HOP 5-4220: Sick Leave Pool.

For more information about FMLA and/or SLP, please contact Leave Management at HRS-LM@austin.utexas.edu or by phone at (512) 475-8099.

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provides employees with counseling and consultation services. EAP services are confidential, and you can speak with them during work hours.  For more information, contact EAP at eap@austin.utexas.edu or by phone at 512-471-3366.

Texas Senate Bill 212

Beginning January 1, 2020, Texas Senate Bill 212 requires all employees of Texas universities to report any information to the Title IX Office regarding sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence and stalking that is disclosed to them. Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation must report any Title IX related incidents that are disclosed in writing, discussion, or one-on-one. Before talking with Institutional Accessibility and Accommodation, or with any staff member about a Title IX related incident, be sure to ask whether they are a responsible employee. For more information about reporting options and resources, visit http://www.titleix.utexas.edu/, contact the Title IX Office via email at titleix@austin.utexas.edu, or call 512-471-0419.