ADA and FEHA Accommodations

California employers must engage in a good faith interactive process when an employee requests a disability accommodation. Many employers still treat the request like a one-time yes-or-no decision. Under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act, skipping or mishandling the interactive process is its own legal violation, separate from any failure to provide the accommodation itself.

I’ve seen this at Mister Wolf P.C. in our employment law practice dozens of times. An employee develops a physical limitation, a mental health condition, or a chronic illness. They ask for something basic: a modified schedule, a different chair, permission to work from home two days a week, a temporary reduction in lifting requirements. The employer ignores the request, denies it without discussion, or strings the employee along until they quit or get fired. Every one of those responses can violate California law, and many violate federal law as well.

What Laws Protect Disabled Workers in California?

Two overlapping statutes govern disability accommodations in California. The Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. section 12101 et seq.) is federal law. The Fair Employment and Housing Act, specifically Government Code sections 12940(m) and 12940(n), is California law. Both require employers to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified employees with disabilities, but FEHA goes further.

FEHA’s broader protections

FEHA covers employers with five or more employees. The ADA covers employers with 15 or more. That difference matters in California, where many workers are employed by small businesses, medical practices, law firms, and family-owned companies that fall below the federal threshold but are fully covered under state law.

FEHA’s definition of disability is also broader than the ADA’s. Under FEHA, a physical or mental condition “limits” a major life activity. The ADA requires the condition to “substantially limit” a major life activity. That one word makes a meaningful difference. Conditions that might not qualify under the ADA, like mild carpal tunnel that limits typing speed or anxiety that limits the ability to work in open-plan offices, can qualify under FEHA.

FEHA also explicitly requires employers to engage in a timely, good faith interactive process to determine effective reasonable accommodations (Government Code section 12940(n)). The ADA implies this requirement through case law, but FEHA makes it a standalone obligation. Failing to engage in the interactive process is its own violation, even if the employer ultimately provides some accommodation.

What Is the Interactive Process and Why Do Employers Get It Wrong?

The interactive process is a mandatory conversation between the employer and the employee to identify and implement a reasonable accommodation. California courts described the requirement in detail in Gelfo v. Lockheed Martin Corp. (2006) 140 Cal.App.4th 34. The leading case on employer failures is Swanson v. Morongo Unified School District (2014) 232 Cal.App.4th 954.

The Swanson standard

In Swanson, the court held that an employer violates FEHA by failing to engage in the interactive process in good faith. The court emphasized that the process must be a genuine dialogue, not a one-sided determination by the employer. The employer must explore all possible accommodations, consider the employee’s suggestions, and explain its reasoning if it concludes that no reasonable accommodation exists.

What good faith looks like

A properly conducted interactive process includes these steps:

The employee requests an accommodation (verbally or in writing).
The employer responds promptly, usually within days, to acknowledge the request and initiate discussion.
The employer and employee discuss the employee’s functional limitations, the essential functions of the job, and potential accommodations.
The employer may request medical documentation supporting the need for accommodation, but only information related to the functional limitations and the need for accommodation. Not the employee’s full medical history.
The employer evaluates the proposed accommodations, including alternatives, and communicates its decision to the employee.
If the initial accommodation doesn’t work, the process continues until an effective accommodation is found or the employer demonstrates undue hardship.

Where employers fail

The most common failures I see:

Ignoring the request entirely. The employee emails HR about needing a schedule change for dialysis appointments. HR never responds. Weeks pass. The employee misses an appointment, gets disciplined for being late, and is eventually fired. The employer never engaged in the interactive process at all.

Denying without discussion. The employee asks to work from home two days a week due to a mobility impairment. The employer responds with a flat denial: “Our policy requires in-office work.” No conversation about alternatives. No exploration of whether the employee’s essential functions can be performed remotely. A blanket policy applied without individualized analysis violates FEHA.

Demanding excessive medical documentation. The employer asks for the employee’s complete medical records, the name and nature of the disability, and a prognosis. FEHA only entitles the employer to information about the employee’s functional limitations and the need for accommodation. Asking for more is an invasion of privacy and can chill accommodation requests.

Running out the clock. The employer appears to engage in the interactive process, scheduling meetings, requesting additional documentation, and forming committees. Nothing happens. Months pass. The employee’s condition worsens. The employer never decides. This “interactive process theater” violates the good faith requirement.

What are reasonable accommodations?

A reasonable accommodation is any modification to the job, workplace, or work conditions that allows a qualified employee with a disability to perform the essential functions of their position. Possibilities are wide.

Common accommodations

Modified work schedules. Allowing an employee to start later, take longer breaks, or work a compressed schedule to accommodate medical appointments or medication schedules.

Telecommuting. Allowing remote work when the employee’s essential functions can be performed outside the office. California courts and enforcement agencies treat telework as a possible reasonable accommodation when the employee can perform the essential functions remotely. Employers still may evaluate supervision, confidentiality, equipment, and in-person duties, but they cannot reject remote work just because a handbook says everyone must be onsite.

Physical workspace modifications. Ergonomic furniture, standing desks, accessible parking spaces, relocating the employee’s workspace to a ground floor, reducing ambient noise for employees with sensory processing conditions.

Job restructuring. Removing non-essential functions from the employee’s role or reassigning marginal duties to other employees. An office manager with a lifting restriction might be relieved of the duty to stock the supply room, for example, if that task is a marginal function of the role.

Leave of absence. Additional leave beyond what CFRA or FMLA provides can be a required reasonable accommodation if the employee can return to work at the end of the leave.

Reassignment to a vacant position. If no accommodation allows the employee to perform their current job, FEHA requires the employer to consider reassigning the employee to a comparable vacant position for which they’re qualified. Under California law, reassignment means the employer must affirmatively offer the position, not simply allow the employee to compete for it (Spitzer v. The Good Guys, Inc. (2000) 80 Cal.App.4th 1376).

One of our clients was a legal secretary at a mid-size firm in downtown Los Angeles. She developed a repetitive strain injury that limited her ability to type for long periods. She requested voice recognition software and periodic rest breaks to reduce continuous typing. The employer denied the request, saying “everyone types here” and offered no alternatives. She was fired two months later when her productivity dropped. We filed claims for failure to accommodate, failure to engage in the interactive process, and disability discrimination. The case settled. The voice recognition software she’d requested would have cost less than $300.

If you’ve requested an accommodation and been ignored, denied, or fired, document exactly what you asked for, when, who you asked, and what the response was. That record forms the foundation of your case. For related disability discrimination issues, read our guide to disability discrimination in Los Angeles under ADA and FEHA.

What is the undue hardship defense?

An employer isn’t required to provide an accommodation that would impose an “undue hardship” on the operation of the business. Under FEHA, undue hardship means an action requiring significant difficulty or expense. The assessment considers the accommodation’s cost, the employer’s size and financial resources, the nature of the employer’s operations, and the impact on other employees.

How courts evaluate undue hardship

Undue hardship is a high bar for most employers. A Fortune 500 company claiming that a $5,000 ergonomic workstation is too expensive won’t succeed. A five-person startup might have a stronger argument, but it would still need to show concrete financial data demonstrating the burden.

The employer also can’t claim undue hardship based on coworker preferences or customer attitudes. If other employees complain that the accommodation is “unfair” because they don’t get the same benefit, that’s not undue hardship. If customers express discomfort with a visible disability, that’s not undue hardship either.

The interactive process still applies

Even if the specific accommodation requested would impose an undue hardship, the employer must continue the interactive process to explore alternatives. You can’t simply deny the request and close the file. The duty to find an effective accommodation continues unless no possible accommodation exists without undue hardship.

What do the EEOC numbers tell us about disability discrimination?

The EEOC’s litigation statistics show how often disability accommodation failures reach enforcement. In fiscal year 2025, disability was one of the most frequent bases alleged in EEOC merits lawsuits, and reasonable accommodation was one of the most frequent issues alleged. Those numbers do not include California CRD filings or private FEHA lawsuits, where accommodation failures are common.

California’s broader definition of disability, lower employer-size threshold, and active enforcement environment mean more workers qualify for protection and more employers face scrutiny. The CRD’s mediation and investigation processes handle disability-related complaints alongside harassment, retaliation, and other FEHA claims.

How do you request an accommodation the right way?

You don’t need magic words. California courts have held that the employee doesn’t need to say “I’m requesting a reasonable accommodation under FEHA” to trigger the employer’s obligation. Any communication that lets the employer know you need a workplace adjustment because of a medical condition works.

Put it in writing

Verbal requests trigger the interactive process, but put your request in writing. Email your supervisor and HR. Include: a description of the limitation you’re experiencing (you don’t need to disclose your diagnosis), the accommodation you’re requesting, and your willingness to discuss alternatives. Keep a copy in your personal email.

Be specific but flexible

Ask for what you need, but signal that you’re open to alternatives. “I’m requesting permission to work from home on Tuesdays and Thursdays due to a medical condition that affects my ability to commute daily. I’m open to discussing other arrangements that would address the same limitation.” This positions you as a cooperative participant in the process and makes it harder for the employer to blame you for a breakdown.

Follow up

If the employer doesn’t respond within a week, follow up in writing. Build a paper trail showing that you initiated the process and the employer failed to engage. Every unanswered email is evidence.

Send your accommodation request today if you’ve been putting it off. The longer you wait, the more the employer can argue that the limitation wasn’t serious enough to warrant accommodation.

What happens if you’re fired after requesting an accommodation?

Terminating an employee because they requested or used a disability accommodation violates both the ADA and FEHA. The claim is disability discrimination (Government Code section 12940(a)), often packaged with failure to accommodate (section 12940(m)), failure to engage in the interactive process (section 12940(n)), and retaliation.

The timing problem for employers

When an employee requests an accommodation and gets fired shortly afterward, the temporal proximity alone creates an inference of discriminatory motive. Courts and juries understand that coincidences happen, but a pattern of good reviews followed by a sudden termination weeks after an accommodation request doesn’t look like a coincidence. It looks like retaliation.

Damages

Successful disability discrimination claims under FEHA can result in back pay, front pay, emotional distress damages, punitive damages where the evidence supports them, and attorney’s fees. Cases involving egregious conduct, particularly where the employer fired the employee after refusing to engage in the interactive process at all, tend to produce significant verdicts and settlements.

In fiscal year 2025, the EEOC reported more than $528 million in pre-litigation monetary relief across charge investigations and conciliations. That figure covers all protected bases, not just disability, but it shows why employers take accommodation failures seriously once the paper trail is clear.

How do California courts handle accommodation disputes?

Disability accommodation cases in California are typically filed in Superior Court after the employee obtains a right-to-sue notice from the CRD. The employee can also file in federal court under the ADA if the employer has 15 or more employees. The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California handles ADA cases in Los Angeles and surrounding counties. The Southern District covers parts of Orange County and San Diego.

Jury instructions

In FEHA cases, the jury receives instructions on the employer’s duty to engage in the interactive process. California’s CACI Jury Instruction 2546 tells jurors that the employer violated the law if it “failed to engage in a timely good faith interactive process” and that the employer’s failure is a separate basis for liability, independent of whether it also failed to provide a reasonable accommodation. This instruction matters because it means the employer can be found liable solely for refusing to have the conversation, even if a reasonable accommodation might not have existed.

What steps should you take right now?

If you have a medical condition affecting your ability to work and haven’t yet requested an accommodation, do so in writing before the end of this week. Email your direct supervisor and HR. Describe your limitation, propose an accommodation, and express willingness to discuss alternatives. BCC your personal email address.

If you’ve already requested an accommodation and been ignored, denied, or fired, gather every piece of documentation: your request, the employer’s response (or lack of response), your medical documentation, your performance reviews, and any communications showing a change in the employer’s treatment after the request.

At Mister Wolf P.C., our Los Angeles employment lawyers represent employees in disability accommodation cases across California. If your employer shut down the interactive process, denied your accommodation without good reason, or fired you after you disclosed a disability, send us the timeline along with your accommodation request and the employer’s response. We’ll evaluate whether the employer violated FEHA, the ADA, or both, and we’ll walk you through your options for recovery.

ADA and FEHA Accommodations: The Interactive Process Employers Get Wrong