COVID-19’s Impact on Telecommuting as an Accommodation

By Marjory Robertson, Esq., AVP and Senior Counsel, Sun Life U.S.; Abigail O’Connell, Esq., Senior Counsel, Sun Life

Evaluating requests for remote work as an accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), state disability accommodation laws, and pregnancy accommodation laws has gotten harder as a result of COVID-19. During the first two years of the pandemic, many employers not only permitted but required fully remote work for health and safety reasons. Employees and employers alike discovered that many jobs could be successfully performed from home.

In 2022, as leaders required employees to return to offices on a full-time or hybrid basis, employees have pushed back. Under the employment-at-will doctrine, employers generally have the right to terminate work-from-home arrangements. However, under statutory accommodation laws, employers may be required to continue to permit remote work for employees with disabilities and/or pregnancies.

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