CIEE Return-to-Work & Accommodation 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The interactive process under the ADA requires that:
- The employer unilaterally selects the accommodation without employee input
- Both the employer and employee engage in good-faith dialogue to identify effective accommodations (Correct answer)
- The employee must accept the first accommodation offered
- A federal mediator oversees every accommodation discussion
Correct answer: Both the employer and employee engage in good-faith dialogue to identify effective accommodations
The ADA's interactive process is a collaborative, good-faith exchange between employer and employee to find workable accommodations.
Question 2: A warehouse worker with a lumbar strain restriction of 'no lifting over 15 lbs' is returning to a job that requires 40 lbs of lifting. The ergonomic evaluator should FIRST:
- Clear the employee for full duty immediately
- Analyze whether mechanical lifting aids or job restructuring can meet the restriction (Correct answer)
- Terminate the employee's transitional duty and start long-term disability
- Recommend the employee transfer to a different facility
Correct answer: Analyze whether mechanical lifting aids or job restructuring can meet the restriction
Engineering controls like lift assists or job restructuring should be explored before concluding full-duty return is not feasible.
Question 3: Which of the following is a 'reasonable accommodation' example under the ADA for a worker with carpal tunnel syndrome?
- Eliminating the entire data-entry function from the department
- Providing a split ergonomic keyboard and scheduled micro-breaks (Correct answer)
- Hiring a full-time assistant to perform all typing for the employee
- Waiving all productivity standards permanently
Correct answer: Providing a split ergonomic keyboard and scheduled micro-breaks
Ergonomic equipment and structured micro-breaks reduce repetitive strain without fundamentally altering the job or causing undue hardship.
Question 4: In a functional capacity evaluation (FCE), which parameter is MOST directly relevant to ergonomic return-to-work planning?
- Worker's psychological resilience score
- Maximum safe lift capacity and positional tolerances (Correct answer)
- Worker's educational background
- Employer's workers' compensation insurance tier
Correct answer: Maximum safe lift capacity and positional tolerances
FCE results quantify what the worker can safely lift and sustain in various postures, directly informing job matching.
Question 5: An employer offers a returning injured worker a transitional duty position in a different department. The employee refuses. Under most workers' compensation frameworks, refusal of suitable transitional work typically:
- Has no effect on the employee's benefits
- May result in reduction or suspension of wage-replacement benefits (Correct answer)
- Triggers an immediate lawsuit by the employer
- Requires a new medical examination before any action is taken
Correct answer: May result in reduction or suspension of wage-replacement benefits
Most state workers' compensation laws reduce or suspend benefits when an injured worker refuses suitable transitional work offered by the employer.
Question 6: When assessing a workstation for a returning worker with neck restrictions, the ergonomic evaluator should prioritize:
- Maximizing screen size to improve readability
- Positioning the monitor at eye level to minimize neck flexion (Correct answer)
- Placing the keyboard at the highest adjustable height
- Ensuring dual monitors are always used for efficiency
Correct answer: Positioning the monitor at eye level to minimize neck flexion
Monitor height at eye level minimizes cervical flexion, directly addressing the neck restriction.
Question 7: Which law prohibits retaliation against an employee who requests a reasonable accommodation related to a disability?
- OSHA Act of 1970
- Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (Correct answer)
- Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
- Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
Correct answer: Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The ADA explicitly prohibits retaliation against individuals who request accommodations or exercise any ADA rights.
CIEE Return-to-Work & Accommodation 3
The interactive process under the ADA requires that: