Oregon Law on Disability, Pregnancy, and Safety Accommodations
It is illegal for Oregon employers to discriminate against employees on the basis of disability or pregnancy, or because the employee is a survivor of domestic or sexual violence. Employees who have physical, cognitive, or other disabilities, employees who are pregnant, and employees who are victims of domestic or sexual violence, may also be entitled to job-related accommodations under federal and/or state law.
An accommodation is a change to the work environment or job conditions to facilitate the employee’s ability to do the job. In some cases, time off work may be offered as an accommodation, but in many cases employees are entitled to time off for health reasons under different laws that provide employees with job-protected leave time from work. Schuck Law assists employees with enforcing their rights under both these types of laws.
An accommodation is “reasonable” if it is feasible for the employer to make the change when considering the cost and the size and resources of the employer, and the change would effectively address the employee’s job-related limitations. Employers aren’t necessarily required to provide the specific change requested by the employee, but must provide a reasonable accommodation that is effective.
It is illegal for employers to discriminate in hiring, firing, pay, or promotions on the basis of an employee’s disability or pregnancy unless there is objective evidence of a significant, imminent safety or health hazard that can’t be addressed with an accommodation and disqualifies the employee from the job.
Your Rights Are Protected
Employees in Oregon who have been fired, denied a promotion or pay raise, denied an accommodation, or otherwise suffered retaliatory changes to their employment due to disability or pregnancy may be entitled to legal remedies including reinstatement and back wages, lost income due to a demotion or termination, damages for emotional distress, and court orders requiring the employer to provide reasonable accommodations or take other actions to remedy the discrimination.
Under these laws, employers are often also required to pay the legal fees and costs of a successful employee. The employment law and wage recovery lawyers at Schuck Law work on a contingency basis to recover money damages and pursue legal remedies for employees at no out-of-pocket cost to our clients.
If you believe your employer has denied you a reasonable accommodation for disability or pregnancy, or has discriminated against you because of disability or pregnancy, speak with an experienced Oregon employment attorney at Schuck Law for clear, confident legal guidance.
Call 360-566-0144 to find out if Schuck Law can help you and to set up a free initial phone consultation with our employment law attorneys.
Workplace Accommodations: Frequently Asked Questions
What is a job accommodation?
An accommodation is a change to the workplace or work procedures in order to enable a disabled, pregnant / nursing, or at-risk employee to perform their job and access the regular benefits of the job and workplace.
Who is entitled to reasonable accommodations?
What are some examples of reasonable accommodations?
An effective accommodation will depend on the individual’s limitations, but it can generally include things like modifying work schedules, providing modified equipment or assistive technology (like an adjustable desk, screen reader, or noise-canceling headphones), restructuring non-essential job duties, or making physical changes to the workspace.
Under Oregon law, reasonable safety accommodations for survivors of violence may also include a job transfer or reassignment, a modified schedule, a changed work phone number or email, or other adjustments to a workplace or work requirement.
How do I request an accommodation?
An employee puts an employer on notice of a need for an accommodation by notifying the employer of a need for a change in work conditions due to disability or pregnancy. Employees don’t need to use any special words, and don’t have to suggest a specific change, but do need to give enough information to let the employer know that the request for a change is due to disability or pregnancy. While there is no set timeline for implementing an accommodation, unreasonable delays by an employer may violate state and federal accommodations laws.
Can my employer ask for documents or medical information about my accommodation?
Usually, employers are allowed to ask only for enough information and medical documentation to determine whether the employee’s condition qualifies as a “disability” or a “pregnancy-related” medical condition under applicable laws and what the employee’s job limitations are.
Does an employer have to provide every accommodation an employee requests?
No, an employer does not have to provide every accommodation requested. However, employers must engage in an interactive process of discussion with the employee to explore potential accommodations and to try to find one that is effective and does not cause undue hardship to the employer. Most accommodations laws expect that employers and employees should work together to determine what kinds of accommodations are necessary and reasonable.
What is an undue hardship?
An undue hardship is a significant difficulty or expense that an employer would incur in providing a reasonable accommodation. Whether a specific accommodation is an undue hardship is determined on a case-by-case basis and can include things like the employer’s size and resources.
Do I have to pay for or provide my own accommodations?
No. Employers must pay the cost of providing reasonable job accommodations. Employers cannot reduce an employee’s pay or deny the employee a raise or other benefits that the employee would otherwise receive to offset the costs of providing a reasonable accommodation. However, employers are not required to eliminate or change essential job tasks, to make changes that are unusually expensive or disruptive, or to provide personal items like eyeglasses or hearing aids if the employee also uses those items outside of the job.
Schuck Law: Protecting Your Rights To Job Accommodations
Oregon’s Law Against Disability Discrimination
Like federal law, Oregon law makes it illegal to discriminate against employees on the basis of a qualified employee’s disability and requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to disabled employees. Oregon’s disability accommodations law applies to most employers with 6 or more employees.
Generally, a “disability” under Oregon law is a medical impairment – physical, cognitive, emotional / behavioral, or otherwise – that substantially limits a person in a major life activity for six months or more. Oregon law requires employers to provide reasonable, effective job accommodations to disabled employees who request an accommodation for a disability. Like the federal ADA, Oregon law also restricts the amount of medical information employers can request from disabled employees, and whether and when the employer can ask a disabled employee to take a medical test or a drug test or have a medical exam. Oregon law also protects employees from discrimination in employment and in their hiring, pay, promotions, or termination on the basis that the employee has a disability, has a history of a disability, is believed by the employer to be disabled (whether correctly or not), has a personal or family relationship with a disabled person. Oregon law also prohibits retaliation for asking about or invoking their rights under Oregon disability law, or objecting to employer policies or actions that are illegal under Oregon disability law.
Employees who have been denied a job accommodation, wrongfully fired or denied a promotion, or who suffered retaliation for asking about or requesting disability accommodations may have legal claims against the employer for money damages, legal costs and fees, court orders requiring the employer to remedy the unlawful circumstances, and other remedies. Contact an Oregon disability discrimination lawyer at Schuck Law for knowledgeable legal assistance.
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Oregon’s Law Against Sex and Pregnancy Discrimination
Oregon law makes it illegal to discriminate against employees because of sex, race, color, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, or marital status. Discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions is discrimination “because of sex” and is illegal under Oregon law. Oregon law also protects employees from retaliation for asking about or invoking their rights under Oregon’s anti-discrimination laws, or for objecting to employer policies or actions that are illegal under those laws. These laws apply to virtually all Oregon employment with very limited exceptions.
Employees who have been wrongfully fired, demoted, or denied a promotion or raise due to pregnancy, subjected to intolerable insults or intimidation regarding pregnancy, or suffered retaliation for asking about discrimination protections or objecting to policies or actions that violate Oregon’s anti-discrimination laws may have legal claims against their employers and managers for money damages, legal costs and fees, court orders requiring the employer to remedy the unlawful circumstances, and other remedies. Speak to an Oregon pregnancy discrimination attorney at Schuck Law for legal guidance.
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Oregon’s Employer Accommodation for Pregnancy Act
The Oregon Employer Accommodation for Pregnancy Act also prohibits discrimination based on pregnancy, and requires employers to provide accommodations for the known limitations of employees related to pregnancy. It parallels the protections of the federal Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PFWA). However, Oregon’s law applies to employers with 6 or more employees, whereas the federal PFWA applies to employers with 15 or more employees.
Under Oregon law, employers cannot discriminate or retaliate against employees due to the need to provide an accommodation or because the employee requests an accommodation. Employers also can’t impose a job condition on a pregnant employee as an “accommodation” if the accommodation is unnecessary for the employee, and can’t force employees to take a leave of absence because of the employee’s pregnancy or pregnancy-related conditions unless the employee requests or consents to the leave. Pregnant employees who do want to take time off are often entitled to time off under other laws that provide employees with job-protected leave time from work, so employers also can’t deny pregnant workers a right to time off that they are entitled to use. Schuck Law assists employees with enforcing their rights under both these types of laws.
Employees who have been denied a job accommodation, wrongfully fired or demoted or denied a promotion, forced to take an unwanted leave of absence, or suffered retaliation for asking about or requesting Oregon pregnancy accommodations may have legal claims against their employers and managers for money damages, legal costs and fees, court orders requiring the employer to remedy the unlawful circumstances, and other remedies.
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Oregon’s Law on Rest Periods for Expression of Milk
Oregon law requires employers to allow work breaks for the expression of breast milk for the employee’s child up to the age of 18 months. This law applies to most employment in Oregon.
Employers in Oregon are required to provide a private and appropriate space for breast milk expression. That space cannot be a public or shared restroom or a toilet stall, and employers must make reasonable efforts to find a suitable space that is close to the employee’s ordinary work space. If the employer can’t find a space that is close to the employee’s ordinary work space, the employer must count the time the employee spends going to and from the lactation room as work time and must pay the employee wages for that time. Additional lactation break time beyond the work breaks employers must give to all employees doesn’t have to be paid time, but employers can’t require Oregon employees to use paid time off or other leave time to offset or “cover” lactation breaks. Oregon employers don’t necessarily have to provide a space for breast milk storage if there isn’t an existing space, but must allow employees to use the employee refrigerator if there is one, and / or to bring their own storage containers like a cooler.
Employees who are owed wages because they weren’t fully relieved of work duties during the lactation break or weren’t paid for time going to and from a lactation room that wasn’t near the regular work space, or who suffered retaliation for asking about or requesting an appropriate place and break time for breast milk expression, may have legal claims against the employer for money damages, legal costs and fees, court orders requiring the employer to remedy the unlawful circumstances, and other remedies. The employee may be required to provide a written notice to the employer of some kinds of violations before filing a lawsuit, so employees who believe their rights have been violated shouldn’t delay in seeking legal advice.
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Oregon Domestic and Sexual Violence Accommodations Laws
Oregon law provides for reasonable personal safety leave and workplace accommodations for who have suffered domestic or sexual violence, bias crimes (“hate crimes”), or harassment / stalking as defined under Oregon criminal law and certain legal regulations. The law applies to employers who have had at least 6 Oregon employees during any 20 weeks of the year prior to the accommodations request.
Under Oregon law, reasonable safety accommodations may include, but are not limited to, a job transfer, reassignment, modified schedule, changed work telephone number or work station, installed lock, implemented safety procedures or other adjustments to a job structure, workplace facility, or work requirement. Employers must provide reasonable safety accommodations. Generally, an accommodation is “reasonable” if it is feasible for the employer to make the change when considering the cost and the size and resources of the employer, and the change would effectively address the employee’s safety. Employers can request documentation of the need for a safety accommodation such as a police report, court document, or documentation from a medical or legal services provider.
Oregon law also requires employers to provide reasonable “Safe Leave” to employees who have been victims of domestic or sexual violence or hate crimes. Schuck Law assists employees with enforcing their rights under both these types of laws.
It is illegal in Oregon to discriminate or retaliate against an employee because the employee is a victim of domestic or sexual violence, bias crimes, or criminal harassment / stalking, or because the employee requested a safety accommodation due to domestic or sexual violence, bias crimes, or harassment / stalking as defined by Oregon law.
Employees who have been denied a job accommodation, wrongfully fired or demoted or denied a promotion, or suffered retaliation for asking about or requesting Oregon safety accommodations may have legal claims against their employers for money damages, legal costs and fees, court orders requiring the employer to remedy the unlawful circumstances, and other remedies. In some cases managers and other individuals, as well as businesses, can be held personally liable under these laws.
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Important Legal Disclaimer: This website contains general information only, not legal advice. It is not intended, nor should it be relied upon, as legal advice. Reading of this website does not create an attorney client relationship. Each employment situation has unique facts, which when considered by the lawyers at Schuck Law, would result in specific legal advice or opinions. For this reason, Schuck Law does not guarantee any actions taken by any person or entity based upon another’s interpretation of this website. If you are an employee and want to discuss your specific situation, our lawyers offer consultation with no obligation to pay any money, sign up, or incur lawyer fees. Schuck Law generally takes nearly all cases on a contingency fee basis making employers pay the employee’s lawyer fees to Schuck Law. If the employee does not sign a fee agreement with Schuck Law, no attorney client relationship is formed. Despite this fact, communications with Schuck Law are confidential.
