Glossary
Reasonable accommodation
A reasonable accommodation is a change to the job, the workplace or the equipment that lets a qualified person with a disability do the work. Under U.S. law, employers with 15 or more employees must provide one unless it would impose an undue hardship.
Updated October 16, 20264 cited facts, each traced to its source
Also called reasonable adjustment.
Reasonable accommodation is a change to the job, the workplace or the way work is done that lets a qualified person with a disability do the job. In the United States the duty comes from the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Employers with 15 or more employees are covered, and a covered employer must make a reasonable accommodation for the known disability of a qualified applicant or employee unless it would impose an undue hardship 1.
Equipment is one of the accommodations an employer can offer
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) lists acquiring or modifying equipment among the possible reasonable accommodations, alongside job restructuring, modified schedules, readers or interpreters and reassignment 2. Speech recognition software is equipment in this sense, so a request for dictation falls within this category.
Undue hardship is the limit on what an employer must provide
An employer does not have to provide a reasonable accommodation that imposes an undue hardship. The EEOC defines undue hardship as significant difficulty or expense, judged against factors such as the employer's size, financial resources and the nature of its operation 3. The test is case by case, so the same accommodation may be required at one employer and excused at another.
The UK calls the same duty a reasonable adjustment
In Britain the term is reasonable adjustment. GOV.UK says employers must make reasonable adjustments so that workers with disabilities or physical or mental health conditions are not substantially disadvantaged in their jobs. It gives changing equipment, such as a special keyboard for someone with arthritis, as an example 4.
Why it matters for dictation and typing
A worker whose hands cannot sustain keyboard work can ask for speech recognition as one option. The request is strongest when it names the task that is hard, such as long drafting or a daily reporting load, so the employer can match a solution to that task. For how this works in practice, see dictation software as a workplace accommodation.
This entry describes what the sources say. It does not advise on a specific case. For that, a disability rights organization, an employment lawyer or the employer's HR team can help.
Related terms and guides
Related terms: assistive technology (AT), repetitive strain injury (RSI), dictation.
Guides that cover accommodation for writing and typing:
Evidence
Every number on this page, with where it comes from. Open a fact to see the exact words in its source.
- 1.According to the EEOC, the ADA covers employers with 15 or more employees, including state and local governments, and a covered employer must make a reasonable accommodation for the known disability of a qualified applicant or employee unless it would impose an undue hardship.
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 1997 · Original
- 2.
- 3.The EEOC says an employer does not have to provide a reasonable accommodation that imposes an undue hardship, defined as significant difficulty or expense judged against factors such as the employer's size, financial resources and the nature of its operation.
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 1997 · Original
- 4.
Related terms
- Speech to Text for Accessibility, RSI and DisabilitiesThe topic this term belongs to
- Access to WorkAccess to Work is a UK government grant for people with a disability or health condition who need support to do their job. GOV.UK says it can help pay for specialist equipment and assistive software, among other support, and that the grant does not affect other benefits and does not have to be paid back.
- Assistive technology (AT)Assistive technology (AT) is any item, piece of equipment or product system that increases, maintains or improves what a person with a disability can do. Speech recognition, voice control and screen readers are common examples.
- Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC)Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) is a clinical practice area that supplements or compensates for impairments in speaking or understanding language. It uses tools such as picture boards, letter boards and speech-generating devices, and it is augmentative when used alongside speech and alternative when used instead of speech.
- CART captioningCART captioning is a live text service in which a trained captioner types what is said, usually on a stenotype machine, and the words appear on a screen as they are spoken. CART stands for Communication Access Realtime Translation, and it is also called real-time captioning.
- De Quervain's tenosynovitisDe Quervain's tenosynovitis is a painful condition in which tendons that move the thumb become irritated where they pass through a narrow tunnel on the thumb side of the wrist. Repeated thumb and wrist movements, such as texting, can worsen it.
- Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA)Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA) is UK government support for students with a disability, mental health problem or long-term illness, to cover study costs that come from the condition. It depends on individual needs rather than household income, and it does not have to be paid back.
- DysarthriaDysarthria is a speech disorder that happens when brain or nerve damage changes the way the muscles used for speaking work, so speech can sound slow, slurred or hard to understand. Speech recognition trained on typical voices can make more errors with this speech, so accuracy depends on the person and the software.
- DysgraphiaDysgraphia is a difficulty with writing that does not match a person's cognitive level and age, even after adequate instruction. It can affect letter formation, spacing, spelling, writing speed and composition, and speech to text lets a person get their words onto the page without writing each letter by hand.
- Individualized Education Program (IEP)An Individualized Education Program (IEP) is a written statement for a child with a disability, developed, reviewed and revised under the federal IDEA regulations. For US students, it is the school's plan for the special education and services the child needs, and the team must consider whether the child needs assistive technology.
- Median nerveThe median nerve is one of the main nerves of the arm. It runs from the forearm through the wrist into the hand, giving feeling and movement to parts of the hand.
- Repetitive strain injury (RSI)Repetitive strain injury (RSI) is an umbrella term for pain and damage to muscles, tendons and nerves that builds up from repeated movements, held postures or sustained effort, felt in the hands, wrists, arms, shoulders and neck.
- Screen readerA screen reader is software that reads what is on a computer or phone screen aloud, or sends it to a braille display, so that people who are blind or have low vision can use the device. The most used screen readers on Windows are JAWS and NVDA, and VoiceOver is the one built into Apple devices.
Pages that use this term
- Speech to Text for Accessibility, RSI and DisabilitiesTopic
- Speech to Text for Dyslexia and DysgraphiaGuide
- Speech to Text for Deaf and Hard of Hearing PeopleGuide
- Dictation for ADHD: Get Your Thoughts Onto the PageGuide
- Speech to Text for Students With DisabilitiesGuide
- Dictation Software as a Workplace AccommodationGuide
- Can Access to Work pay for dictation software?Question
- Can you dictate a thesis or dissertation?Question
- Do speech to text glasses work for deaf people?Question
- How do college students get speech to text as an accommodation?Question
- Is carpal tunnel syndrome a disability?Question
- Is speech to text an IEP or 504 accommodation?Question
- Is using speech to text for an essay cheating?Question
- Access to WorkGlossary
- Assistive technology (AT)Glossary
- Section 504 planGlossary