As HHS restricts telework, CDC asks employees to ‘bypass’ reasonable accommodation process
Federal News Network••nation
Key Points:
- The CDC is seeking informal ways to grant temporary telework accommodations for employees with disabilities after a new HHS policy requires high-level approval for telework requests, potentially slowing the process amid a backlog of over 3,000 cases.
- Supervisors have been instructed to have employees send medical documentation directly to the CDC’s chief operating officer, Lynda Chapman, for up to 30 days of interim telework, bypassing the traditional reasonable accommodation specialists, raising concerns about medical expertise in decision-making.
- The new HHS policy restricts interim telework accommodations during the review process, requiring employees to return to the office or use leave once temporary telework agreements expire, which supervisors say effectively functions as a denial and may conflict with federal disability laws.
